We Shall Call Him Picard [closed]

[ccecilia]

The fear that Cecilia felt when her magic disappeared was unprecedented. And given her history, that was saying something. Though, she was hardly given the proper amount of time to let it settle as she was torn back and forth among all wards that day, dealing with the terrible fall out as charms and spells faded. Pansy's death was a shock but the

Comments

[george_goesboom]

For as long as he could remember, George had usually spent the last week of March gearing up for his birthday - not, like most people did, organizing parties or subtly reminding his friends of the upcoming date or clearing the schedules of the following days for the sake of recuperation. No. The week before his birthday was spent organizing pranks, stocking up on the best of the tricks the store had to offer, and preparing himself for the inevitable retaliations those who knew him best generally had in stores for him.

His birthday, beyond being the day that reminded him of the fact that he was inching up towards the numbers that would eventually declare him 'too old for this nonsense', as his mother liked to
put it, was a day to let loose all of the artillery he had made a living out of building.

Unfortunately, this year's festivities had had to be put on the back burner. Because timing was a fucking bitch.

Between watching ten years' worth of pride and hard work quite literally crumble before his eyes and spending the afternoon surrounded by panicked crowds of shoppers, doing his best to keep his own anxieties under wraps and to reign in the wave of worst-case scenarios about the state of the hospital where he knew Cecilia had been that morning, for once, jokes and pranks had been the farthest thing from his mind.

He'd spent the better part of the previous day gingerly picking through the remains of the store with Fred, reinstalling all sorts of supportive charms, clearing out the worst of the debris, and sorting piles of merchandise into functioning, salvageable, or ruined-beyond-repair piles. They would have their work cut out for them for weeks just fixing what had been damaged, let alone rebuilding any kind of inventory, and after stumbling home early that morning with nothing more than a quickly mumbled 'Happy birthday, mate', each of the twins had retreated to their own flats and, for the first time in years, George had gone straight to bed without bothering with the usual preparations for the next morning's chaos.

He had finally rolled out of bed barely a half hour before Cecilia's knock echoed throughout the flat, and he stumbled to the door, all bed-head hair and dressed in little more than a still-unbuttoned pair of beyond-well-worn jeans.

If there was anything that could have properly cheered him up and taken his mind away from the ongoing lists of cleanup to-dos rolling through his mind, it was undoubtedly the sight he opened the door to.

An automatic grin slid across his face as he pulled the door open, replacing the bleary-eyed, still-sleepy frown he had been sporting.

"Well, now I just feel underdressed," he teased by way of a greeting, stepping aside to let her (and, he noticed after a moment, her curiously noisy and rattling package) inside.

[ccecilia]

There wasn't a face she wanted to see more than his at this very moment. Of all the people that flashed through her mind when the magic went dark, his was the one that stayed with her the longest, her mind constantly racing back to him and the shop while she was rushing through the halls. He was her distraction, her only semblance of a reprieve when Pansy was taken away. She could let herself worry about him, even if in the back of her mind she knew he was stronger than anyone else she knew- that he would be fine.

But that didn't stop her from feeling a strong sigh of relief as he opened the door, a little worrying nudge in the back of her head hoping that he'd made it out of Diagon Alley unharmed. All the stories she heard about riots and looting-

"No, please-" she mused, sparing him a playful glance as she stepped inside his flat. "You're over-dressed, really-"

There was no denying the slow drag of her eyes across his body, settling briefly on the sharp cut of his hips before she caught her bottom lip between her teeth.

Then, she held the box out for him, far too eager (as she always was with presents) for him to open it.

"Happy birthday-" she said, grinning brightly.

[george_goesboom]

George couldn't help but grin a little wider at the less than subtle look she gave him, meeting that bite of her lip with a silly, cheeky little shake of his hips, the chaos of the past few days all but forgotten now that she was here. He closed the door behind her and turned his attention to the box she all but shoved at him, the rattling and shifting weight of whatever was inside made that much more obvious once he took it from her.

"This isn't anything that'll blow up in my face, is it?" he asked, raising a curious eyebrow as he laid the package on the breakfast counter and carefully started to pry off the hole-dotted lid of the roughly wrapped box. Not that he would have been particularly shocked or annoyed if it was - he had received and thoroughly enjoyed his fair share of trick presents over the years. The exploding package thing was an ancient trick that somehow never got old-

He didn't wait for her answer before popping the top off, the perfectly giddy look on her face only fueling his curiosity-

George's jaw dropped as he leaned over the box to peak inside, the source of the rattling now very much obvious as the tiny wrinkle-faced puppy continued to bounce around the confines of the package, a squeaky little yelp escaping it as it jumped up towards him, pawing at the walls of his makeshift crate.

"No way-" His grin brightened that much more as he looked back and forth between Cecilia and the whirring bundle of fuzz, reaching in to catch it mid-leap and lift him out of his cardboard cage.

[ccecilia]

She had felt properly awful to stick the little guy inside the box. Even if she had carefully poked enough holes in the walls that it might as well have become a cage. She had fallen for the little english bulldog from the moment she scooped him up from the shelter, carefully avoiding any kisses on the mouth when it lapped at her face. She had found him early that morning when she was out picking up a few things and he quickly became her buddy while she finished her errands. It was strange how easily she took to him, never having been graced with a pet when she was a child.

They were too messy and barbaric, apparently, according to her parents.

But this one- this preciously tiny, wrinkled puppy was perfect.

She watched George carefully, a grin spreading across her face as he removed the top, a breathy giggle passing through her lips as the puppy leapt from the box and haphazardly into George's hands.

"I sort of just couldn't resist-" she said, inching closer toward them as the puppy yelped, wriggling in George's arms as Cecilia's fingers scratched behind its ears. It leaned into her nudge and she wrinkled her nose "What do you think? It's not crazy, right? I mean- he's just bloody cute-"

She glanced up at him wryly from beneath her long lashes.

"Kind of like his new potential owner?" she suggested, batting those lashes at him playfully.

[george_goesboom]

The Weasleys had never been particularly big on pets beyond the easy-to-manage/ignore rodents and self-sufficient owls that had flocked to the Burrow over the years - his mother had always firmly shut down the conversation whenever one of them had brought up the idea of getting a cat or dog (or monkey, which Fred had continued to beg for well into his late teens) with the excuse that the house was already enough of a menagerie without the added hassle of furry creatures (which, well, fair point).

Then once he had moved out the shop had taken off, and his free time had dwindled to short of nothing, and plans for pets had fallen to the wayside along with intentions to clean under the bed or to organize accounting paperwork - taking the time to do it himself was unlikely, but if someone else offered to...

George lifted up the tiny wriggling bundle, holding him at eye-level and biting down on the stretch of his grin, narrowing his eyes with as much straight-faced seriousness as he could manage in the face of such adorableness.

For a moment, the puppy actually stopped squirming with barely contained energy, stilled in his hands and met his stare with an evenness that instantly had his chest swelling in a way he could only describe as being love at first sight-

Then the little guy was all squirm and yelps again, his tiny paws batting at George's face and that little pink tongue lapping at the air, desperately reaching for something to lay a puppy smooch on.

"Alright, he can stay," George laughed, wrinkling his nose as he brought the miniature dog closer and allowed him to enthusiastically lap at his face, glancing at Cecilia through one squinted eye.

"Does he have a name?"

[ccecilia]

If there was ever a possibility that Cecilia could love George more than she already did, it was in this moment, watching him as the little bulldog lapped at his face. She covered her mouth with her hand to stifle her laughter as she watched them, feeling rather smug about the whole thing. She liked to believe she was an incredible gift giver- and so far, she seemed to be two for two.

"Erm- well, I've been trying a few out-" she admitted, before pressing her lips together. "I've had him most of the morning and at first I was just calling him puppy and then I moved on to Bradley for whatever reason and then he made this little face and it reminded me of William Shatner so I started to call him Kirk-"

She smiled sheepishly.

"But since he's going to be your dog, after all, maybe we can go with Picard?" she suggested, making a slight face of surrender.

She considered him closely, tugging gently at his paw.

"He does have the whole bald thing going for him-"

[george_goesboom]

As caught up as he had been in getting quickly and closely acquainted with the cutest creature in existence, it took a moment for the magnitude of what Cecilia was suggesting to actually sink it.

Kirk versus Picard wasn't a lightly fought battle. Alliances were stern and unbroken, sides were picked and stuck with through thick and thin, arguments were stubbornly fought in endless rounds of point and counterpoint, and compromises were rare, even considered treacherous and blasphemous in certain circles.

Never mind that three-word phrase, romantic Paris getaways, days spent locked away and tangled up in sheets, or any kind of gesture that either of them had ever attempted. This was by far the most epic declaration of love he could ever have imagined.

George tore his eyes away from the wrinkly face that was apparently intent on nuzzling against every bit of him he could reach, an incredulously endeared sort of smile tugging at his lips as he looked at Cecilia.

"Really?" he asked, perhaps a bit too giddily, but there was only so much enthusiasm he could keep under wraps when there was a puppy licking at his face and she was looking as sheepishly, fantastically adorable as she was. "You'd actually allow that? And you wouldn't love him any less for it?"

[ccecilia]

"I don't think its possible to not love this little guy wholly and completely," she told him honestly, grinning brightly now, a sense of pride lingering in her, watching as the miniature dog wriggled around in George's hands. "I mean- look at him-"

And even as she spoke, the little puppy turned toward Cecilia, tongue licking at her hand as she laughed. If it was possible to achieve love at first sight, she might have found it. She wasn't sure she'd ever pegged herself for the bulldog type, always imagining herself with a sleek greyhound.

But this. Well, this was definitely better.

Especially when her eyes focused on George, taking in that giddy and completely lovable look settling on his face. She had wanted to make this day really good for him, especially with the way he'd so easily taken care of her in the past few months- how perfect he had been.

"I still might call him Kirk when you're not around, though," she told him teasingly.

[george_goesboom]

"Oy, let's not confuse the poor guy, yeah?" George laughed, turning his attention back to that squishy little face.

"Picard it is. And don't let your mum tell you any different," he told him sternly, though there was only so much seriousness he could muster when the puppy's response was an enthusiastic yell and a tail wag that had his whole tiny butt shaking back and forth.

He leaned over to set the puppy down at his feet, and the little bundle immediately took off running, dizzily circling both of them a few times before taking off towards the living room, practically tripping over himself as he tumbled around, bouncing off the furniture and knocking over piles of haphazardly discarded bits of gadgets and tools that typically littered his flat.

"Well, looks like I'll be getting some help making a mess around here-" he laughed again, watching as the little guy circled around a few times before hobbling back towards then.

[ccecilia]

Mum.

There was an odd tug at her chest when he said that word, wondering if he realized how easy it fell from his lips. She bit at the inside of her cheek as she inched closer to George, her hand curving around his bare waist as she watched Picard go off running around the flat, using George's piles of things as a maze, darting this way and that. For such short legs, he could move awfully fast.

Which might have been a bad thing, now that she thought about it.

She couldn't help but laugh as the puppy came ambling back toward them, reaching up on his hind legs to paw at Cecilia's shins before tumbling down as he lost balance.

"I don't think you need any help," she teased George, pinching his side before kneeling down to scoop Picard up into her lap, her hands curving around his tiny form, wrinkling her nose as he lapped at her cheek. "Isn't that right, Captain? I think your daddy has that covered-"

[george_goesboom]

George hadn't quite realized what he was saying as he spoke to Picard until the word was properly out there, and he was too distracted by the sight of the chaotically rambling puppy to bother trying to make sense of the implications his subconscious had apparently thrown out there.

He squirmed and let out a laughing yelp of his own at Cecilia's sharp pinch at his side, glancing down as Picard scrambled up onto her lap. His grin stretched widely across his face as he took a moment to just watch them (Captain, now that was certainly one way to compromise), both equally adorable, a funny sort of swell rushing through his chest as she met his slipped word with one of her own.

This beat out any past firepower-fueled birthday celebrations by miles.

"It's organized chaos," he declared stubbornly, his usual excuse whenever the state of his flat was brought into question. He lowered himself down, dropping into a cross-legged seat right where he was and reaching over to lightly scratch behind Picard's tiny floppy ears, his other hand idly drumming its fingers against Cecilia's knee. "I think he and I understand each other on that point-"

[ccecilia]

"You two are already a perfect match, then-" she announced, glancing at George with a giddy, wide smile.

It had been such a tumultuous few days, Cecilia scrambling at the hospital, working wards she had no business being apart of and trying to get into contact with everyone she cared about- just to make sure they were alright. It had been a short list- her brother, Daphne, George- but they'd all been a terrible fixture of worry in her head while she felt trapped within the hospital.

But right now, this made up for all of it. Especially when she could see that smile on George's face or the way it felt when his fingers touched her skin.

She settled properly down on her bottom, Picard scrambling up closer toward her, pawing at her chest as his tongue lapped at air, obviously hoping to get back to her face.

"Isn't that right?" she asked the miniature dog.

Then, she remembered the card she had for George in her purse.

"Hold on- I have something else-" she said, carefully moving so that she could reach for the bag she let drop on the floor behind them. It was sort of a silly thing- a little prank card she had put together for him- that when he opened it a slew of confetti would burst into his face.

"Here-" she smiled, holding out the bright red envelope for him. "I just wrote this thing-"

When really it said, "Got you!" smack dab in the middle.

[george_goesboom]

Having her here now (and with the best and most gloriously named birthday present ever in tow, no less) was almost enough to make George forget entirely about the insanity of the past fews days, about the confusion and concern over how such a drastic event have caught their world entirely too unawares, and the weeks of overtime he knew he had ahead of him to make up for the mess and damages.

Those concerns paled, really, in comparison to knowing she was safe and unharmed-

"Oh, did you?"

He took the offered envelope with a slightly suspicious grin - Howlers had been and still were a preferred and entirely overused form of communication as far as his mother was concerned, and George had developed an ingrained skepticism over the years for anything packaged in such a glaring shade of red.

But gingerly popping the tab of the envelope didn't incite any shrieking shouts, so he deemed it safe-

-until a burst of confetti exploded in his face, bits of colorful paper catching in his hair and raining down around him. Picard's stumbling and yelping practically doubled in enthusiasm as the little guy hopped clumsily between his and Cecilia's laps, snapping at the falling pieces of confetti.

George glanced down at the 'Got you!' declaration of the now-harmless card, the initial shock quickly giving way to a burst of uninhibited laughter as he looked back at Cecilia, sputtering against the confetti that had nearly flown into his mouth.

"Yeah, yeah you did," he consented, reaching over to brush a few flakes from the top of Picard's head. "Probably should have expected that."

[ccecilia]

Cecilia wasn't very funny nor was she really what she would consider a great pranker. Prankster? She wasn't even sure what the term was. But she knew well enough that George Weasley was known for tricks and pranks and exploding somethings, anythings. She couldn't help but try and put something together for him, albeit it was small and relatively harmless- unless of course, he had some unknown allergy to tissue paper.

But as it was, the confetti exploded exactly as she planned, bursting out into a giant bomb of colorful paper, landing this way and that, nearly covering little Picard in the frenzy. Of course, the puppy only tore into the confetti, bouncing back and forth, nearly tumbling over its very short legs as he tried to catch everything with his pink tongue.

She laughed brightly, the giggles catching in her throat as she watched them both, wondering briefly how she'd been so lucky to have something so good in her life.

She inched closer toward him, scooting her body against his as she reached up to brush some of the confetti from his hair, her fingers brushing gently against his cheek as she grinned.

"Maybe-" she admitted with an innocent shrug, feeling lighter than she had in days. "I can be a little sneaky if I want to be-"

She traced her thumb across his bottom lip before leaning forward to kiss the corner of his mouth.

"I missed you," she told him softly.

[george_goesboom]

George loosely wrapped an arm around her, the silky fabric of her dress making it easy to slide her across the wooden floor and that much closer to him as his laughter tapered off into a soft smile. He turned his head to lightly nuzzle into her hand, pressing a quick kiss to her palm.

"Missed you too," he mumbled against her hand before leaning in to blow away a stray piece of paper that had landed on her cheek.

Picard leaped up as much as his squat little frame would allow, bouncing off of George's knee in an attempt to catch the falling bit of confetti, then rolling over and instead turning his attention to the flurry his movements had kicked off the ground. He tumbled in circles for a few a bit longer before suddenly giving up, having apparently tired himself out for the moment, and scrambling to stretch himself out across both of their laps.

"It's been a weird few days, huh?" George added, a small grin tugging at the corner of his lips despite the severity of the question's implications as he glanced down at the little puppy, scratching him behind the ears.

[ccecilia]

There was something so ridiculously calming about the strength of George's arm around her. She had so long handled everything on her own, withdrawing into herself, ignoring the things that made her life hard. She had become so used to doing everything on her own that when George came into her life, it was as if there was a ridiculous weight pulled from her shoulders. He was just so comforting and present and so willing to be there for her, with her, whatever it was she needed.

She'd never had anyone like that before.

"Weird would certainly cover it-"

She glanced down at the wriggling little puppy curled up between their laps, his little yelps causing her to smile, her fingers scratching underneath his chin. He seemed to like both of them paying such close attention to him.

"We lost Pansy-" she said, then, looking back up to George. "On Saturday- she um, she couldn't make it without magic."