It seems to be taking them longer and longer to walk anywhere. Edie -- somehow, impossibly, four years old -- reminds Alex more and more of Darlington. Her dark hair is unruly, her expression searching and thoughtful, and she's into everything. The pockets of Alex's good black coat end up full of stones and leaves and feathers, pieces of paper and little plastic toys. While she knows her daugher is half Daniel Arlington, she's not entirely sure she isn't half magpie, too.

They're in Petros Park, Kirby off the lead and loping about the place, a shadow in the corner of Alex's eye. Alex is sat on a bench, shoulders hunched in her coat. She's staring into space, not really thinking about anything. She's been on anti-depressants since just after Danny disappeared but, sometimes, she can still feel it -- depression yawning up somewhere underneath her like a pit that it would be so, so easy to just slip into. But then, there's Edie, kicking through fallen leaves in her boots and her biker jacket, the frills of the skirt that she'd picked out that morning frothing around her knees, and she's a tether, holding Alex to the world, and that's something to be grateful for, in the end.

"Mama!" comes the little voice and Alex looks up, startled out of whatever reverie she'd been lost in. She holds out her hands.

"What is it, baby?" she asks, ready to receive whatever treasure it is that her little girl has for her. Ready to keep going.

ooc: Find Alex and Edie in Petros Park, any time of day that suits your pup (even if it needs to be as the sun goes down! ALternatively, meet them on the walk home. ST/LT welcome).