Who: Danny & Cate
What: Dropping off Maria
When: Tuesday Afternoon
Where: Cate's home
Rating: G
Status: Incomplete



Pagingcate: Cate gave a great big sigh and stretched her arms high above her head. Pushing away from her computer desk she stood and twisted her body letting her back make a disgusting cracking noise. She had been at the computer all day going through casting information and other details about her new Alice in Wonderland movie. She always hated the months of preparation. Picking the actors, wading through the details, making sure the producers weren't doing anything strange. She had been able to dodge it the past few days but with Maria out of the house she was forced to actually sit down and work. It was getting late in the afternoon though and she had had enough. Bending down she turned off the computer and headed out to the kitchen to get something to eat. Dan was supposed to be coming by at some point to drop Maria off but he wasn't always exact with his timing and she had learned to deal with it. She didn't begrudge him any extra time with the baby and had learned to be patient. Getting a glass of water from the kitchen she wandered into the living room where she could sit in the bay window and look out on the street. No, she wasn't watching for her baby, that would be just too pathetic. No, she was enjoying the scenery.

dan is a basterd: Daniel Ainsleigh hated Los Angeles. Quite frankly, he found it a horrible place to live, let alone raise a child, but this was where his child was and he had never been one to argue all that much so long as things were going relatively well. Their arrangement WAS relatively well, after all. While he often heard horror stories of fathers who had to beg just to have their court-appointed joint custody time, Daniel had been able to swoop in whenever he felt like it (to an extent) and swoop away his little angel. No, it wasn’t the best situation, but it was one that worked and quite frankly, if the alternative was living together again, this was by far the ideal. Sometime during the trip from the park to her mother’s house, Maria had fallen asleep. In a way, Danny was grateful for it. She had been fighting a nap all day, and while one this late in the afternoon would probably mean she’d be a bit fussy going down, at least she’d be manageable between the time she woke up from her nap and then. Unfortunately, any time he found his daughter napping, he felt as though he was missing something. Sleep was a waste of time, a moment he wasn’t playing with her, when she wasn’t taking him in, seeing him as Daddy. At least when they were at home he could hold her and watch her sleep, but tucked against the side of her car seat, Daniel was forced to survive on stolen glances in the rearview mirror. By the time he pulled up into the driveway, Maria was completely gone. Not only did she not wake when he gently lifted her from the car seat, she didn’t stir. With baby in one hand, Danny used the other to grab up her stuffed toy. For a moment, he had gone for her diaper bag, but it wasn’t HER diaper bag, it was HIS, to be used when HE had her. Just another reminder he was dropping her off to home, a home he wasn’t a part of. It was only the cup of Starbucks that he grabbed from the roof of the car that kept him from pouting too much, the balancing act of holding child, cup and bunny enough to get his mind off of things he could not change. He saw Cate in the window before he made it to the door, pretending she didn’t care if Maria was home or not. It was enough to elicit half of a smile before he continued his walk up. The key he had stolen was slipped into the lock, another balancing act. He didn’t bother to knock, he never bothered to knock. Instead, he let himself inside and headed automatically back towards her room to put her down. “Hey.” It was just a whisper, thrown over the top of their child’s head. Maria never once stirred.

pagingcate Cate couldn't help but smile and took a small sip from her glass of water when she saw the car pull up her drive. She watched Daniel's rather interesting balancing act as he got Maria out of the car. The poor baby looked completely tuckered out. Getting up from her seat in the window Cate walked back into the kitchen to put her glass away. She didn't bother to go get the door just listened for the sound of the key turning. Dan thought he had been so clever when he took that key but Cate had just left it out for him to steal. It seemed easier and far less complicated than just giving him a ket. Granted if she ever told anyone about it, it would probably raise a lot of questions. She heard the softly called greeting and walked out of the kitchen heading in the direction of Maria's nursery. When she had been pregnant she had gone a little crazy and Dan had gone along with the whole thing. That was of course when things had still been good. Leaning against the doorway of the nursery she crossed her arms over her chest and smiled as she watched Dan lay Maria down. Pushing off the doorjamb she walked into the room and picked up the blanket that was thrown across the rocking chair in the corner of the room. Walking over to the bed she waited for Dan to finish so she could throw the extra blanket over top. It was a German mother thing, your baby could never be wrapped in too many blankets.

dan is a basterd Her and her thing for blankets. Daniel had been in his own little world, the cup put on top of the wardrobe before he had laid down Maria, kissed her forehead, snuggled in bunny close to her. The second he was standing, though, and his hand strayed away from the curls forming at the base of her neck, he was aware that he was being watched. Some may have felt self-conscious. Daniel just smiled. “You really think she needs that? It’s 500 degrees out.” He was about to step forward and remove it, when he reminded himself that she had probably read all the parenting books as well. She was Maria’s mother. She was just as likely to be as right as he was, and she had the right to make mistakes. His hand still flexed, though, resisting the temptation, before it reached out for his cup. “We were at the park all day. I think the sun got to her a bit. But I… I put on her hat, and her sunscreen and…” And why was he so eager to prove he had done everything right? Maria was just as pale as she had been when they had left. It was obvious he had done what he was supposed to. In the end, Danny just let out a restless sigh and took a sip from his coffee. “Is there any other days you want to work this week? I mean, I’m really doing nothing until press starts up again. So I can take her any time.” It was nice to have a job like acting. The downtime, when he had it, was amazing. However, the past week he had been reminded of how horrible it could be. A week in the South of France should have been amazing. Instead, Cannes had left him exhausted and grumpy. Within an hour of stepping off the plane, he had been in this very room, checking on Maria. Nevermind that he had called her, that he had even taken his webcam and insisted on conferencing them both once a day so he could see her. He hated doing press, but more than that, he hated being away from his daughter. Funny, really, that he was supposed to be so relaxed yet freaked out about that sort of thing.