Pansy Wisteria Parkinson (pugmylife) wrote in madisonvalley, @ 2017-03-06 22:13:00 |
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The run-in with Mary at the jewelry store hadn’t stopped Neal’s momentum. He had it all planned out, how he would ask Pansy to marry him. He never thought that he’d get to this moment with anyone before, but here he was. Everything was set up the way he planned. The notes in all the places at the apartment that he was confident would lead her to where he was waiting for her. It was fun planning a scavenger hunt, and now all he had to do was wait. She’d see the first note as she walked into the apartment, a folded over piece of paper with her name on it. Of all the things that are tried and true And have withstood the test of time I’ve found that it’s my love for you That does nut need a rhyme. *** Although Pansy always looked forward to seeing Neal at the end of the day, it wasn't surprising that he wasn't home when she returned from work. Sometimes he got caught up in the studio working on a piece; sometimes he ran afternoon and evening classes. After three years, Pansy wasn't so insecure about their relationship anymore. Her Pistachio would return to her as soon as he was able. So no, his absence wasn't surprising. Or even the little note he left on the table for her. It had become a little habit of theirs, which had begun with that first drawing she'd left in the studio for him. Since then, they'd tucked away notes and drawings for each other, little surprising tokens that reminded them of their affection for the other. Pansy picked up the note, smiling to herself at the little poem. The spelling error - or was it? - caught her attention, however. Was it a coincidence that Neal had written “nut” instead of “not”? Did he also have pistachios on the mind? No, Neal was much more careful and deliberate than that. If he wrote “nut”, he meant it. But why? Clever pun? Out of curiosity, she went to the living room, where the pistachio painting she'd left with him had a place of honour on the mantle. There, to her surprise and delight, she found another note. *** I had no doubt that you’d figure it out The rhyme that was all too clear But the game’s far from done And you’ve not yet won The prize that is oh so near. Glowing embers and soot used to lie beneath The game’s next piece that will take you to a place rarely seen And if you are stuck, well consider it your luck To look no further than the East. There were so many ways the clue could have been deciphered, but Neal was counting on Pansy to know that there was one particular item in the apartment that represented the “East” to them, and it used to stand on the mantle next to the pistachio painting. They had moved it a little while ago - the replica Ming vase that Neal had spent an excruciating amount of time on perfecting - and now it sat on its own pedestal in the bedroom. A safe distance away from the bed. There was no point in breaking good art. Inside of the vase, well Pansy would find a key. And she would recognize it immediately. *** Oh, he was a clever, clever man. Pansy had a difficult time remembering, now, when she'd thought Muggles were dull and obstinate and stupid. She still thought some of them were, just as some wizards were dull and obstinate and stupid. But her Muggle was brilliant and creative and wonderful. Unfortunately, she wasn't sure she was as clever as he was, because she had to read this next note a few times before the capital East finally clued her to the Ming vase now residing in their bedroom. Deciding not to use her magic to summon the vase to her in case there was another clue in the room, she walked over instead and fished around in the vase until she found the key to her apartment inside. A place rarely seen indeed. These days, she’d all but moved in with Neal, keeping her own apartment only for storage of art and clothing. Again she took the Muggle way there, in case there were clues along the way. It wasn't until she'd arrived at the apartment that she found the clue, however. There was a new painting she hadn't seen before there. It was a masterfully painted version of one of the wine shelves at the Apothecary, except…. She squinted. Something was off. *** The wine was not in order, at least not with the way Pansy had organized it. No, Neal had placed all the wines in alphabetical order in the painting, instead of by categories the way Pansy liked it. It was a subtle clue to have painted all of the bottles of wine with the exception of one. It wouldn’t be hard to notice in the painting since it was missing from it, but she might not realize it once she arrived at the Apothecary since it was still on the rack. A lone bottle of Merlot - empty - with a clue on the label that could only be seen if she held it to candlelight. She’d find a map, with a clearly marked “X” in the park. It was near the forest line, peaceful and quiet. He had taken her on a picnic there last year. It was where he first told her he loved her. When she reached the park a small child would deliver the last note to her, one that read: You’ve made it this far I knew you would! But there’s one more step ahead Take out your wand, point toward the wood And say “Accio Box” instead *** Despite having had a long day at work, Pansy was fully energized now and immersed in this mystery. Where was this all leading? And why? Neal had always been attentive and full of surprises, but this was outdoing even himself. Hopefully all would become clear once she got to the end of this puzzle, whenever that came. In the meantime, she was thoroughly enjoying revisiting all these places and things that had come to mean so much to them over the years. Doing as the note instructed, she summoned the box to her. It was large but light, and tied with a brightly colored ribbon. A present! Definitely a good reward for all her efforts. When she saw Neal again, she'd have to give him a reward for. his efforts. Smiling to herself, she found herself a seat on a nearby bench and shook the box gently. Nothing rattled; whatever was inside had to be very well packaged. Unable to contain her curiosity any longer, she opened the box and found, nestled in a bed of satin, a ring. She gasped, her hand flying to her mouth. It was very similar to her mother’s engagement ring, the one Pansy had always loved - and hoped, as she'd told Neal once, to have for her own one day. With trembling hands and tears in her eyes, she carefully eased it out. He'd remembered. And he'd found it for her. Which meant... *** Neal appeared from behind a nearby tree. He watched with delight as she summoned the box, and then moved to the bench to open it carefully. The look on her face when she saw the ring was more than he could have hoped for, and if it was any indication then perhaps she knew what was coming next. The smile on his face was broad, and his eyes were twinkling with happiness. “Pansy,” he called out to her. Neal settled on the bench next to her, and moved a hand to cup her cheek when he saw the tears in her eyes. “Hey now…. This is supposed to be a happy moment.” He was teasing, of course. His thumb wiped at the tears before he slid off the bench to kneel on one knee. He held Pansy’s hand in his. “These past three years have been some of the best years of my life. I never thought that I’d find the girl of my dreams here, and I never thought she’d be a witch but here you are. I used to think this place was a curse, but far from it. It brought me to you, and that’s more than I could ask for. Pansy… would you do me the honor of marrying me?” *** Pansy had never thought she'd find the man of her dreams here either, or that he'd be a Muggle. But she had and he was, and in the past three years he'd brought her so much joy she couldn't believe she'd ever thought Muggles to be inferior. It wasn't just because he spoiled her terribly with his great cooking and his random presents: it was the relaxing evenings spent curled up on the couch; it was the exploration of Muggle culture and technology (and all the wild ways Pansy managed to make them explode); it was showing him magic and falling in love with both him and it all over again when she saw the wonder in his face. There was no reason to hesitate, then, when he posed the question. “Yes,” she said, laughing through her tears. She half fell, half threw herself off the bench, and wrapped her arms around him. “Of course!” *** Neal held Pansy close after she threw herself at him. He landed on the ground, laughing a bit at the sight of them, but also happier beyond words. He stayed there with her for a few minutes before he pulled back. “Now let’s get that ring on your finger,” he said as he pulled at her hand to take the ring from it. Neal looked at it for a moment before he he slid it onto her ring finger. “It’s perfect,” he said. “Just like you.” He gazed into her eyes for a moment before he leaned in to kiss her. *** It was a long time before either of them broke the kiss, and when they finally did, Pansy pulled back and studied the ring on her finger. It was a perfect fit, but she wasn't surprised at that. Neal was nothing if not detail-oriented. And it looked and felt better than any of the times she'd tried on her mother’s ring. Grinning, she nudged herself under his arm and settled against his shoulder. She didn't care that the grass was wet; she could dry it - and them - off later. “How long have you been planning this? It was really quite perfect.” *** “I had as much fun planning it as I watched you going from clue to clue,” he said in response. Truth was he didn’t spend any time at all planning it. He woke up that one day and decided that that was the day he was going to ask her for her hand. The rhymes and the clues all took almost no time at all especially for someone as creative as he was. Neal took a moment to kiss the top of Pansy’s head as he held her on the wet grass. “Now comes the hard part,” he said as he nuzzled into her hair. “Planning the wedding.” *** Wedding. Now that was a nice thought. “I'll warn you I've been planning my wedding since I was eight,” Pansy told him. She held out her hand again to admire the ring on it. It was going to be a long time before she got tired of staring at it - if she did at all. “Though I'm sure I can adapt it for a Muggle groom.” She didn't bother mentioning that in her early years, it was Draco she'd planned her wedding to. Their lives had diverged so much by now. He was happy with Sydney, and she couldn't even remember how it felt to believe herself in love with him. *** “I think most women plan their wedding from a very young age,” Neal said as he playfully tugged on Pansy’s hair. He imagined that her wedding was entirely wizard based considering what he knew of her history. There was a point in time when Pansy wouldn’t have even considered dating a Muggle let alone marry one, but here they both were in situations they couldn’t have even imagined. “You do whatever you want to do, sweetheart. All I need is to see you walking toward me down the aisle. I just want you to be happy.” He kissed her forehead again, and moved to stand to his feet. Neal helped Pansy up once he was steady. “Let’s go home, get changed, and head out to dinner. We’ve got some celebrating to do.” *** Pansy took the opportunity to brush some non-existent grass off his very well-muscled arse with her free hand, then leaned up to kiss him again. She didn't think she'd ever get tired of that. “We can probably get a head start on celebrating before we go out,” she said wickedly, and held his hand all the way home. |