FICLET: Lost in Symbolism (Zacharias/Seamus)
Title: Lost in Symbolism
Fandom: Harry Potter
Pairing: Zacharias/Seamus
Word Count: 525 words
Summary: Seamus gives Zacharias a penguin, with symbolic meaning. Zacharias doesn't get it.
Author's Notes: For abilizersparkle, who requested for Zacharias/Seamus with penguins for prompt (And then "Fluffy Christmas" in another prompt). It didn't turn out quite in a way that I like, but it IS sort of fluffy and also Christmasy. :|
"A penguin?" Zacharias stared in confusion at the stuffed animal that fell out of the box. The stuffed penguin stared at him blankly, and a tag that hung from it bore the words 'Be My Penguin'.
"You don't like it?" Seamus asked, the wounded look on his face telling Zach that perhaps it would be best not to answer honestly.
"No, no, I do," Zach hastily replied. "It's just that, er, well. It's a penguin."
"You don't like it," Seamus stated, looking at his boyfriend with hollow disappointment.
"I do, I do," Zach insisted. "But, well, it's a penguin," he repeated, as if that explained his whole reaction and Seamus was supposed to understand.
Seamus sniffed rather indignantly. "There's a reason it's a penguin, you git."
"Okay," Zacharias said slowly, nowhere closer to understanding why he was given a stuffed penguin for their anniversary than he was when he first opened his present.
Seamus shook his head, sighing at the boy's cluelessness. "You have no sense of meaning and symbol," he said, in a way that made it sound like a lack of sense of meaning and symbol is a great tragedy, which it probably was, but Zacharias still had no idea what was going on to care for tragedies of that magnitude.
"You're an absolute git," Seamus declared finally after a long silence in which Zacharias continued to stare dumbly at Seamus while occasionally giving the stuffed penguin confused looks. He shoved a cut out news article into Zach's chest.
Well, Zach had figured the git bit out, really, it was the penguin bit that bothered him. His eyes scanned the article briefly, hoping for enlightenment. "These penguins are gay."
"Yes, they are."
Zacharias paused, wondering if he was going the right direction with his thoughts. He spoke slowly, hesitantly, and briefly he wondered how much Firewhiskey Seamus had consumed before he decided to buy the penguin for Zach. "You, uh, gave me a penguin for Christmas because.. Because there are gay penguins and I'm gay and therefore it means something I.." Zacharias stared helplessly at the article and at the penguin and at Seamus. "I don't get it."
The hopeful look on Seamus' face fell when the last four words were uttered, and he tried to keep himself from tearing at his hair. "The penguins in this article have lived together for years and have remained monogamous to each other and have even tried raising children," he explained.
Zacharias nodded expectantly.
"Alright," Seamus said in a tone that wasn't entirely not exasperated. "They've been together. For years. And they're monogamous. Still with me?"
Zacharias nodded.
"So if I give you a penguin, it means that...?"
"You want me to be monogamous? But I already am," Zacharias replied, cocking his head sideways and looking as confused as he ever was.
Seamus felt the urge to hit his head against a wall. "They're like a married couple, Zach."
"So what does that-- oh. Oh."
"Finally."
"You want to marry me?"
"I wanted you to be my penguin, didn't I?"
"...Why couldn't you have just given me a ring?"
Seamus hit his head against a wall.
Fandom: Harry Potter
Pairing: Zacharias/Seamus
Word Count: 525 words
Summary: Seamus gives Zacharias a penguin, with symbolic meaning. Zacharias doesn't get it.
Author's Notes: For abilizersparkle, who requested for Zacharias/Seamus with penguins for prompt (And then "Fluffy Christmas" in another prompt). It didn't turn out quite in a way that I like, but it IS sort of fluffy and also Christmasy. :|
"A penguin?" Zacharias stared in confusion at the stuffed animal that fell out of the box. The stuffed penguin stared at him blankly, and a tag that hung from it bore the words 'Be My Penguin'.
"You don't like it?" Seamus asked, the wounded look on his face telling Zach that perhaps it would be best not to answer honestly.
"No, no, I do," Zach hastily replied. "It's just that, er, well. It's a penguin."
"You don't like it," Seamus stated, looking at his boyfriend with hollow disappointment.
"I do, I do," Zach insisted. "But, well, it's a penguin," he repeated, as if that explained his whole reaction and Seamus was supposed to understand.
Seamus sniffed rather indignantly. "There's a reason it's a penguin, you git."
"Okay," Zacharias said slowly, nowhere closer to understanding why he was given a stuffed penguin for their anniversary than he was when he first opened his present.
Seamus shook his head, sighing at the boy's cluelessness. "You have no sense of meaning and symbol," he said, in a way that made it sound like a lack of sense of meaning and symbol is a great tragedy, which it probably was, but Zacharias still had no idea what was going on to care for tragedies of that magnitude.
"You're an absolute git," Seamus declared finally after a long silence in which Zacharias continued to stare dumbly at Seamus while occasionally giving the stuffed penguin confused looks. He shoved a cut out news article into Zach's chest.
Well, Zach had figured the git bit out, really, it was the penguin bit that bothered him. His eyes scanned the article briefly, hoping for enlightenment. "These penguins are gay."
"Yes, they are."
Zacharias paused, wondering if he was going the right direction with his thoughts. He spoke slowly, hesitantly, and briefly he wondered how much Firewhiskey Seamus had consumed before he decided to buy the penguin for Zach. "You, uh, gave me a penguin for Christmas because.. Because there are gay penguins and I'm gay and therefore it means something I.." Zacharias stared helplessly at the article and at the penguin and at Seamus. "I don't get it."
The hopeful look on Seamus' face fell when the last four words were uttered, and he tried to keep himself from tearing at his hair. "The penguins in this article have lived together for years and have remained monogamous to each other and have even tried raising children," he explained.
Zacharias nodded expectantly.
"Alright," Seamus said in a tone that wasn't entirely not exasperated. "They've been together. For years. And they're monogamous. Still with me?"
Zacharias nodded.
"So if I give you a penguin, it means that...?"
"You want me to be monogamous? But I already am," Zacharias replied, cocking his head sideways and looking as confused as he ever was.
Seamus felt the urge to hit his head against a wall. "They're like a married couple, Zach."
"So what does that-- oh. Oh."
"Finally."
"You want to marry me?"
"I wanted you to be my penguin, didn't I?"
"...Why couldn't you have just given me a ring?"
Seamus hit his head against a wall.