August 30th, 1894 - Rowle Household

In the aftermath of the sinkhole, it had taken Jack far longer to get to check in on Mrs. Rowle than he would have liked. Her stay at the hospital hadn't been too long, a couple of days at most, after they had been able to magically take care of her injuries. Still, he worried about residual pain or long-term effects, especially with his more physical fix of putting her shoulder back into place.

This was just being a good healer, he told himself. It had nothing to do with the fact that he had found himself enjoying her company and their letter exchanges more than he remembered having done in a long time. Still, he had some flowers from the Potts ladies in hand, a bouquet that apparently said "get well" as best flowers could and some home remedies she could use if she was still feeling some after effects of the pit predicament.

After knocking on the door, the household staff let him in and he was redirected to the sitting room to wait. He felt oddly ill at ease, like he was intruding somehow. It had been a long time since he'd done something like this. Well, actually, he'd never actually paid calls to a lady before. His courtship with Lena had exactly been proper and so now he was wondering if he was breaching decorum somehow. Too late for that, he supposed.

Jack stood as Mrs. Rowle came in and he smile despite himself. "I meant to come by sooner, but the hospital has been busy. I did want to check in and see how you were fairing for myself, however." He said as he held out the bouquet for her.

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Evangeline Rowle c/o Henry Berkwood

  

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Evangeline thought that the best--or possibly worst--way to appreciate home was to be forced out of it for a period of time. Evangeline wouldn't have claimed to particularly lover her home--it had felt too much like a prison once, and though she'd worked hard to make it a happier place over the years, Eva was sure she would not miss it when the day came that she could hand over the reigns of it to Elliott when he was old enough to claim his birthright. But spending time in the sinkhole and then the hospital really rather put the comforts of home into perspective, didn't they? If nothing else, Evangeline had never been so grateful for her own bed.

She was not surprised when she was informed Mr. Collins had arrived--they were friends by now, she liked to think, and such thoughtfulness seemed right from him, but Eva would not have blamed him if she was very low on the priority list. She could only imagine how busy the hospital must be at the moment.

"I can only imagine how busy you must be," Eva said after greeting him. She returned his smile and accepted the flowers with some pleasant surprise. "Oh. Thank you." She'd never received flowers from a gentleman before she realized, somewhat belatedly. Edward certainly hadn't been one for that kind of sentiment--and probably knew his wife wouldn't want that from him, anyway--and well. Elias hadn't had the chance to do that sort of thing. There was irony in there somewhere. Eva carefully set the flowers down as she took her seat. "The shoulder's a bit sore still," she said honestly. "Though much better than it was."

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Set by Bee <3

It felt strange, to be sitting in company, even with Mrs. Rowle, as they had never quite seemed to catch the other at a good time, barring the zoo of course. He thought that she was genuinely surprised by the flowers and now he wondered if it was too much? It was normal for someone who had been in the hospital right? He couldn't just show up empty-handed either. Their conversations had always been enlightening and he had enjoyed their letters, so it shouldn't feel quite this awkward, but then again, Jack supposed he had never really done anything like this when it wasn't with family.

Sitting opposite her, Jack set his bag at his feet and wondered if that was odd. "I think things are tapering off. All of the minor injuries have been tended too and sent home." There were the more serious ones still, but Jack didn't feel it necessary to bring them up at present. "I brought something to help with any residual pain." He added, fishing in his bag for the potion he'd brewed specifically for stiffness or pain. He hoped it would help as he set it on the table with the flowers. "Everything else alright?" He hoped nobody she was close too was badly affected either.

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Though unaware of Mr. Collins' own thinking, it occurred to Eva that this was a bit strange. They had known each other for half a year now, and social calls had not been part of that. Not that she was complaining, of course. She had enjoyed their letters and their conversations--when they didn't involve bodily harm, anyway. Eva supposed strangeness was to be expected for any new experience, and at least this wasn't an unpleasant strangeness.

"I'm glad to hear it," she said. Sometimes it felt like wizarding Britain was cursed with how much horrible luck seemed to befall them all on a regular basis. It was probably better not to think of that, lest you become too paranoid to leave the house, but Eva thought it must be worse for healers than it was for most people. "Thankfully life has otherwise been very quiet," she said. "Nothing out of the ordinary to report, and hopefully it stays that way for a while." Eva chuckled lightly. "And you?" Hopefully there was something to take his mind off all the work he had on his hands, if even for a little while. "Your son is returning to Hogwarts in a couple of days, isn't he? Is he excited?"

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Set by Bee <3

"I think we could all use a little quiet." Jack agreed quietly. The magical community hadn't even gone a full year without a disaster that claimed lives. Last year it was the dragons; his department had gotten the overflow from St. Mungo's and it had been an ordeal. He was hoping they could go for a long while without anything quite so ugly happening again.

At the mention of Emerson, Jack shook himself from those less pleasant thoughts. "Yes, second year. It was nice having him home this summer." Jack realized just how quiet the house was when Emerson was gone off to school. He hadn't quite really figured out what it was until his son had returned from his first term in June. It seemed his first year had gone well though and it was good that Emerson was enjoying school, so Jack hadn't given away just how different everything felt. "How are Elliott and Emilia?" It must have been a good scare for them to have Evangeline in the hospital for a few days.

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"I imagine," Eva said. She had a feeling she was going to miss her children terribly in a couple of years when it was their time to go to Hogwarts. She tried not to think about it too much, but Evangeline was already sure that she was going to be one of those mothers who embarrassed her children, and she wasn't sure that she felt bad about it. Oops. "My own second year was just after the muggle riots," she reminisced. "What is it about summer that seems to attract chaos?" It wasn't the only time of year to do so, of course, but sometimes it felt that way.

"They're well," Eva said, shaking herself out of her reverie. "Happy to have me home, and I'm happy they've been safe at home." She smiled. "It may be the most in sync we've been as a family since they started speaking." Eva chuckled. She worked hard to have a favorable relationship with her children, but she also encouraged individualism in them. Occasionally that didn't work out so well for her, but she was figuring it all out as she went. The best example her parents had left for her was "don't force them to marry an abuser nearly three times their age." The bar was in Hell, which was incidentally where Eva assumed Edward was, too.

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Set by Bee <3

Evangeline was right, there was always something about the summer in which the wizarding world at large seemed to have an upset. "You're quite right, it is a conundrum." Jack had to wonder if there was some form of cosmic intervention of if they were truly unlucky. Maybe it was all the magic in one place. Who knew.

"I'm sure it must have been quite the ordeal for them, I'm sorry it happened that way." Jack had known what it was like, after losing Lena, what that sort of absence did to a child. Emerson had been young, but he'd still acted out. It was a hard transition, thankfully for the Rowle children, it had only been temporary. "Fortunately there is no place like being home." His own was a little empty and quiet these days, but he still felt as though it was a place of respite, where his family was present even if they physically were elsewhere. "It's hard to be apart," Jack acquiesced, thinking more of just what Evangeline had been through, but did not want to take it too deep.

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"It's hard not to be excited for them, even as we want to keep them close, isn't it?" Eva said thoughtfully. She certainly hadn't realized there was such a dichotomy before she became a parent. Perhaps that was the benefit of having many children--it put off the time when you'd be responsible for no one but yourself again as long as possible. "The older they get, the more independent we need to let them be." Eva reminded herself that it was good for them, even as she knew that would never stop her from fretting.

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"I think that is the hardest thing to come to terms with," Jack agreed. "That and the quiet after getting used to the house always being full of noise." He chuckled. Raising a son was not for the faint of heart, and though Emerson was far from troublesome, he was a bit rowdy, as boys tended to be. There was always something going on, either inside or outside, in which noise was being made. Jack missed it now that it was not the year-round event that it used to be. But as Mrs. Rowle had said, they needed to be independent.

It was not lost on Jack, the more they conversed, the more they seemed to have in common and it was a considerable relief to have somebody understand where he was coming from, especially in the position of being a single parent. "But it is as good for them, as it is for us." Jack had thrown himself headfirst into parenting after Lena's passing and now that Emerson was not his sole focus, he could get back to some of the things he had enjoyed previously, in his spare time.

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"True enough," Eva agreed. She smiled ruefully. "If nothing else, the challenges of single parenting are character building." She was sure she would have been a different sort of parent if she hadn't been widowed-- she probably would have had to be, beholden as she'd been to Rowle family expectations--and though she liked to think she was a better mother for it, she couldn't deny it was difficult at times. Eva had to rely on staff wherever she had a deficit, which she knew was a luxury, but still. "At least at this age they still spend time at home. Perhaps when they're older I will find all sorts of new hobbies to keep my mind occupied." Privately, Evangeline was also dreading the day--still nine years out--when Emilia would make her debut and she would have to learn how to navigate that.

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Set by Bee <3

Jack was not sure he had ever felt so understood as he did in that moment. "That was part of why I picked up reading about muggle medicine." Sure his work kept him busy, and it was not a far leap from his occupation, but Jack had always found the subject thoroughly fascinating. "It was a good use of the mind." He ought to pick up some of the more physical hobbies he used to enjoy, boxing, archery, something to help keep him physically fit as well as mentally.

"Is there anything yo would like to try? Or pick up again?" He was curious if there was anything she might be looking forward to. It was a strange dichotomy, waiting for the time to happen and wishing it didn't come to pass. He'd made peace with it himself over the last year or so, but it still felt odd. At one point in his life, Hogwarts for Emerson had seemed like a lifetime away and now he was in his second year.

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"I used to like to draw," Eva said, surprising herself with the sudden wistfulness. "When I was younger. There was a time when it was... hard to feel inspired, and I think by the time I was through it, the discipline had atrophied." It had been difficult to do things that had brought her enjoyment when she'd been so miserable, Eva hadn't given a lot of thought to what it still cost her. Or, more to the point, she tried not to. "I ought to get back to it. Hobbies are probably good for you, I would think."

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Set by Bee <3

It was strange to think how the hobbies of their youth just fell by the wayside as life took over. Jack could see it. He could picture Mrs. Rowle in a window seat somewhere, sketchbook in hand, light spilling into the room from the afternoon sun. "I'm sure you could give it another try." It was a skill just like any other, it just required practice.

He appreciated her use of the word atrophied though; it was always amusing to hear something he always associated with the medical world used in another way. "I was told I should pick up a hobby or be more social, get back out there." His sisters, after a time, a long time, had started hinting at seeing if he could find someone else. "I used to enjoy boxing and archery, when I was a much younger man." Before kids, before Lena. It felt impossible that was the same life he was still leading, was at least twenty years ago. Back when he could go out drinking with his mates, a little more carefree and with less responsibility. He didn't need that now, but perhaps something to exhaust himself a little bit more and get him out of the house.

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Evangeline smiled, easily picturing Mr. Collins in such activities. She might not have given it much thought if she didn't have firsthand experience with his physical strength--he'd carried her out of the pit, after all. "I played quidditch for a season at school," she confessed. It felt like a million years ago now. "It was always a little bit of a guilty pleasure, since it's not considered very ladylike." That was, of course, half the appeal. But she had genuinely enjoyed it for its own sake. It had been a release of pent-up energy that she hadn't had a lot of other options for.

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Set by Bee <3

"Did you now?" Jack chuckled in appreciation. He wasn't quite sure he could picture Mrs. Rowle playing quidditch, but he was an advocate of doing things that made you happy. "Just one season?" Jack had missed most of the drama at Hogwarts surrounding anything related to things being banned (was he really that old?), so he wasn't sure if it had anything to do with that, but he was curious as to why only one season if she liked it so much.

"I was never very good at it, like to watch the matches though." He really had never been a very good flier, but he could certainly see the appeal.

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"My parents didn't like the idea of girls in quidditch," she said by way of explanation,"[/b] Evangeline said by way of explanation, smiling as though if anything regarding her family and her childhood wasn't the touchiest of subjects. "In those days, girls didn't need permission to try out. Perhaps too many chose it as a method of youthful rebellion," she added, again as if that wasn't exactly what she'd used it for. Still... "It is exciting to be up in the stands, though."

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Set by Bee <3