There were several things Aisling enjoyed about Christmas shopping. Most of them centered around the challenge of finding the perfect gifts, and the rest around books. And while she'd managed to find most of what she wanted in her usual swift fashion, which had taken up just an hour or so after lunch, it seemed that she had found herself suddenly stymied.

After about seven minutes of staring at a small table covered in Divination tomes, she had shifted herself to staring at them from a chair. Or a step, or a pile of books. She wasn't quite sure, but the revised vantage point allowed her to set down the rather large pile of items she'd already collected, which had one quivering box of candy on top. Set atop that was a very small box of crystallized pineapple, which she had already taken a few pieces from.

A few minutes of that, then she lifted her pile of gifts and headed back over to the table again. There, she picked up one of the larger books, turned it over, and began to intently inspect the back of it.

With winter exams ready and prepared for the next week, Ananke decided that it was time to take some time off to go run some errands. She had already been fitted for a dress, and so she turned her attention towards shopping for gifts for the winter season which didn't last long with such a small family, so Ananke quickly decided she should also get gifts for her fellow staff members. Of course, when one shopped in a bookstore, it could be rather easy to be distracted.

And so, the Divination professor, with a small stack of cards in hand, made her way to a table of Divination texts. As the red-headed witch saw someone else at the table her eyes fell over the stack of gifts next to her, "Ah, I see you're engaged in that balancing act called 'Holiday Shopping'?"

Ananke looked around the table lightly tapping her fingers agains cover to cover, trying to decide which one was worth reading, "You seem rather experienced," her eyes rose to look at the other woman before she lowered her gaze towards the table again.

"Oh, yes." Aisling shifted her grip on the boxes, one of whom had become unbalanced and was slowly sliding down. "And a side of birthday gifts, though most of those are taken care of." Having Christmas and Tarron's birthday occur within a few days of each other had always brought a touch of stress, and with the girls returning from school in the midst of it made a pleasing situation still a bit trying.

"And I don't know enough to pick out books for my daughters, it seems. I've been trying to find a good introduction on the subject, so they at least have some understanding a bit before they're offered the choice to take it. But most of what I've found seems along the lines of '21 Ways to Predict True Love in the New Year'." She lifted up one of the offending books, turned it over to glance at the back, then set it back onto the table. "Ah, but I forget my manners. Aisling Knight." She moved the boxes again, then decided against the complex procedure that would be required to free the proper hand for shaking and just offered a smile instead.

And a birthday! Ananke gave a short nod and hum, “From a seasonal celebration to an annual one—that requires a little more expertise,” she gave a small smirk before she offered a smile to the witch in return for her name

 “Ananke Cosmos—pleasure.” She returned her gaze to the pile of books on the table and then sourly pressed her lips together, “I have yet to have any of the Knights in my class yet, but…”

She returned her steely blue gaze to the other witch, “I believe the problem with that is that there are a variety of ways to introduce someone to the subject, from… “ her hand fell over a few tomes on ‘true love’, “21 Ways to Predict True Love to something more…” she nodded a sot smile at Aisling, “practical.”

“Perhaps relating it to another subject that piques their interest? Or something they could apply to things they do everyday—“ Ananke’s eyes looked away as she had a lapse in thought. Then she looked back at the witch and added.

“…withholding trying to discover their Christmas gifts without opening them.” If it wasn’t about love and romance for children, it was about how well they could get away with mischief!

Aisling grimaced a little at the affronting books, and gave a small nod. The realization that Ananke was the Hogwarts Divination Professor  gave Aisling a flicker of annoyance at herself, even if her children were not yet taking the subject. Knowing who was instructing them was still of great importance. "My daughters are only in their first year. Though I do hope that at least one of them will take it when the time comes."

As is not uncommon for parents, Aisling did hope for her daughters to do better than she had in school. "As clever as tempting them with the true nature of their gifts might be, I fear that such an endeavor would be stymied with the time they'll be spending with their cousins. Though I'm certain there is some-" Just then, the boxes began shifting again and she barely caught them.

"Though, perhaps you'd join me for a quick cup of tea? It's always wonderful to find someone to discuss the subject with, and I seem to have obtained enough packages to inhibit myself, yet again." She motioned quite carefully to a small area in the store where a few small tables and chairs had been set up, likely to appeal to overwhelmed and chilled shoppers.

Ananke nodded towards Aisling, though the precarious pile of boxes was beginning to earn a worried and concerned look from her. The professor looked between the witch, her boxes, and a table. The redheaded witch smiled and gave a short nod before she procured her wand and pointed it as the boxes, "As much as this might get on a clerk's nerve," Ananke looked over her shoulder to see if any such employee was stalking behind her before she swish and flicked her wand, which levitated the gifts into a neat floating pile. If Ananke hadn't liked the other witch, she might've just let her try to continue her balancing act--but a good conversation and good cup a tea were rarities indeed.

"Now tea, sounds lovely," and so she began walking and conducting the pile towards the tables, "And it is good to not rush children into growing up, even with school," as she made her way over to the table she cast Aisling another small smile,  "Sometimes you just don't really know what you want out of life unless you've done it and enjoyed it a bit... or if you're distracted by something like Christmas, birthdays, and cousins." Her tone floated with an instructive quirk as she gestured her free hand at one of the tables.

"Where would you like these?"

As precarious as a pile of floating boxes might be in a crowded bookshop, to have them off her hands was something Aisling was quite grateful for, and thus she offered no protest. "Just somewhere out of the way, please. There's nothing fragile inside. And please, let me go get the tea."

The tea itself only took a few minutes, though the employee who handed it to Aisling looked as bedraggled by the season as she herself felt. The cups were quite full, which made the short trip back a little slower. Once they were safely set down upon one of the small tables, she allowed herself to collapse into one of the chairs with the sigh and movements of someone just a bit exhausted by her shopping excursion. "I don't with to think about them growing up, not yet. Rather see them eat too many sweets and wear clothes that their father doesn't quite approve of." She smiled, though it seemed a bit tired as well.

"But I fear it is all too easy for me to speak too much of them." The tea sent little tendrils of steam swirling up over the table. "How is your tea?"