I Could Have Danced All Night
“This is ridiculous.” Fabian dropped the report he was reading back onto the desk and ran his fingers through his hair, making it stick up in weird angles. “None of these people are telling us anything. We're wasting our time on them.”
“You're right,” a fellow Auror agreed from down the row. “At least, there's no point in continuing this tonight. We can't talk to them again until tomorrow anyway. We may as well come back to it. As for me,” he said, rising from his desk and pulling on his coat, “I'm actually going to spend some time with my family. Merlin knows I haven't much lately. Until tomorrow,” he said as he left the Auror office.
Fabian agreed. He had been doing a lot of working lately, and neglecting those around him. The only family he saw regularly anymore was Gideon, and that was only because Gideon spent most of his time at the Auror office. So it took him no time at all to decide who was the person he most wanted to spend time with.
Emmeline.
Two minutes after leaving the office, he unlocked the door to their flat. She smiled upon seeing who it was.
“So do you have time for your horrible boyfriend or should he be punished for being so horrible by being forced to spend the evening alone thinking about how horrible he's been?”
“I always have time,” she said as she got up. “Have you got some grand plans for tonight or something?”
“I figured on leaving that to you, really,” he said as he sank into the nearest chair and rubbed his eyes. “Going out, for dinner or something, or staying in.”
“If we stay in, one of us will have to cook, and I don't think you ever progressed past sandwiches,” she pointed out.
“Perhaps we'd better go out then,” he said wryly. “Any preferences?”
"I'll leave that up to you," she said.
“I know just the one.” He stood up again and offered her his hand. “It's just down the street, even. We can walk there.”
The short walk seemed to do him good. As they strolled, hand in hand, down the street, the stress and tiredness that had been apparent when he appeared at her door disappeared and he became the animated and outgoing Fabian he'd been when they first started dating. The Fabian she'd always enjoyed spending time with. All throughout dinner, and the shared dessert, it was almost enough to make things feel normal again. Then, back to the flat, where he tuned the radio to his favorite Muggle radio station (she wasn't sure how he'd gotten it to pick up non-wizarding stations, but he had). He liked to spend time just sitting and listening, imagining for a few hours that there wasn't war on all sides (which was perhaps another reason he liked the Muggle stations; they didn't have war reports in between songs). Tonight, however, he stood next to the radio and held his hand out to her. “Would you care to dance?”
“I thought you didn't know how.”
He grinned a slow, sleepy grin. “I do now. The most wonderful woman I know taught me.”
“I can't say no now. I want to see how good you are.”
Once he took her hand and pulled her close and put his other arm around her waist, it wasn't much like dancing. It was more swaying slowly around the living room floor in time with the music coming from the radio (music which, coincidentally, had something to do with dancing; he wasn't paying much attention to the lyrics).
“This. I could do this every night.”
“Well maybe if you came home every night, you could.” He could tell that she was smiling as she said it.
“I'll just tell the war to put itself on hold then, so I can.”
“I don't want to talk about that.”
“We'll talk about something else then.” He took her hand again and led her to the couch, where they cuddled up together with the radio playing softly in the background.
“What?”
“I don't know. We don't even have to talk. We can just sit here.”
“I don't mind just sitting here. If we're going to do that, I could make us some tea.”
“Tea would be wonderful.”
“I'll be right back then.” She gave him a quick kiss on the cheek and got up from the couch to go into the kitchen and make some tea.
“I'll be waiting.” Of course he would. The only thing he wanted to do tonight was spend some time with her. Even if sleeping was also high on that list.
It seemed that sleeping, however, would win out, at least for the moment. When she returned from the kitchen with tea, Emmeline found him stretched out on the couch fast asleep.
“Could have at least saved some room for me.”
“You're right,” a fellow Auror agreed from down the row. “At least, there's no point in continuing this tonight. We can't talk to them again until tomorrow anyway. We may as well come back to it. As for me,” he said, rising from his desk and pulling on his coat, “I'm actually going to spend some time with my family. Merlin knows I haven't much lately. Until tomorrow,” he said as he left the Auror office.
Fabian agreed. He had been doing a lot of working lately, and neglecting those around him. The only family he saw regularly anymore was Gideon, and that was only because Gideon spent most of his time at the Auror office. So it took him no time at all to decide who was the person he most wanted to spend time with.
Emmeline.
Two minutes after leaving the office, he unlocked the door to their flat. She smiled upon seeing who it was.
“So do you have time for your horrible boyfriend or should he be punished for being so horrible by being forced to spend the evening alone thinking about how horrible he's been?”
“I always have time,” she said as she got up. “Have you got some grand plans for tonight or something?”
“I figured on leaving that to you, really,” he said as he sank into the nearest chair and rubbed his eyes. “Going out, for dinner or something, or staying in.”
“If we stay in, one of us will have to cook, and I don't think you ever progressed past sandwiches,” she pointed out.
“Perhaps we'd better go out then,” he said wryly. “Any preferences?”
"I'll leave that up to you," she said.
“I know just the one.” He stood up again and offered her his hand. “It's just down the street, even. We can walk there.”
The short walk seemed to do him good. As they strolled, hand in hand, down the street, the stress and tiredness that had been apparent when he appeared at her door disappeared and he became the animated and outgoing Fabian he'd been when they first started dating. The Fabian she'd always enjoyed spending time with. All throughout dinner, and the shared dessert, it was almost enough to make things feel normal again. Then, back to the flat, where he tuned the radio to his favorite Muggle radio station (she wasn't sure how he'd gotten it to pick up non-wizarding stations, but he had). He liked to spend time just sitting and listening, imagining for a few hours that there wasn't war on all sides (which was perhaps another reason he liked the Muggle stations; they didn't have war reports in between songs). Tonight, however, he stood next to the radio and held his hand out to her. “Would you care to dance?”
“I thought you didn't know how.”
He grinned a slow, sleepy grin. “I do now. The most wonderful woman I know taught me.”
“I can't say no now. I want to see how good you are.”
Once he took her hand and pulled her close and put his other arm around her waist, it wasn't much like dancing. It was more swaying slowly around the living room floor in time with the music coming from the radio (music which, coincidentally, had something to do with dancing; he wasn't paying much attention to the lyrics).
“This. I could do this every night.”
“Well maybe if you came home every night, you could.” He could tell that she was smiling as she said it.
“I'll just tell the war to put itself on hold then, so I can.”
“I don't want to talk about that.”
“We'll talk about something else then.” He took her hand again and led her to the couch, where they cuddled up together with the radio playing softly in the background.
“What?”
“I don't know. We don't even have to talk. We can just sit here.”
“I don't mind just sitting here. If we're going to do that, I could make us some tea.”
“Tea would be wonderful.”
“I'll be right back then.” She gave him a quick kiss on the cheek and got up from the couch to go into the kitchen and make some tea.
“I'll be waiting.” Of course he would. The only thing he wanted to do tonight was spend some time with her. Even if sleeping was also high on that list.
It seemed that sleeping, however, would win out, at least for the moment. When she returned from the kitchen with tea, Emmeline found him stretched out on the couch fast asleep.
“Could have at least saved some room for me.”