Who: Vicky Frobisher & Percy Weasley
What: Percy has a little present for VIcky
Where: Vicky’s apartment
When: After this exchange on the journals
Rating: C for Cute
Status: Log. Complete.

Percy greeted Vicky expectantly at the door of her own flat. “Hello, love,” he said, welcoming her with a brief kiss upon the lips. “When I say I’ve got you a little something, it’s pretty little. I do hope you like it.”

From where Vicky stood, she might’ve spotted an open cardboard box from Weasley Wizard Wheezes set upon the coffee table in front of the sofa. “Close your eyes, I want it to be a surprise.”

“Hello.” Vicky returned Percy’s kiss then obediently closed her eyes. She suspected whatever Percy had for her was in the box, but she played along anyway. Percy was clearly delighted with whatever he’d gotten, and she wasn’t going to do anything to spoil that. “You didn’t wrap it?”

“Close your eyes,” Percy repeated, “You’ll find out why soon enough.” He smiled at her and waited until she did as he requested, then linking his hand with her arm, guided her closer. As they were nearly there when the tiniest mew came from the box. Mew, mew. Giving away the contents before Vicky could even open her eyes,

The inside of the box was lined with one of Vicky’s white bathroom towels, and looking up at them was a tiny kitten with the biggest, blue eyes looking up at them. She was thin, malnutritioned, and quivering with fear, fur matted and wet after being recently bathed.. Percy explained, “I found him in the alley behind the shop after I’d closed and put out the garbage. I don’t know… I just thought…?” Percy looked at Vicky for her reaction.

Vicky let Percy guide her over but opened her eyes when she heard the soft sound. “Merlin, Percy, she’s adorable!” She cooed softly as she put one hand into the box so the kitten could sniff it. “What were you doing back there, huh? You look like you should have been with your mama still.” The kitten wobbled over and butted her head against Vicky’s hand, mewing again as she started to purr. Vicky beamed as she looked back at Percy. “She’s so sweet!”

“There were no other cats in the alley, but I couldn’t just leave him there. He’s so tiny that I was afraid to apparate or take the floo to my flat, which is why I brought him here.” Percy raised his eyebrows. “I did a Charm on him to remove any fleas. I think he’s alright to pick up. Does this mean you’d like to keep her?”

Vicky immediately scooped up the kitten and cuddled her to her chest. "Of course I want to keep her! She's the cutest thing ever! I’m glad you found her. I hate to think what would have happened otherwise. I hope your mama is okay, little one, but at least we know you are.” The kitten was so small there was no way she would have survived the night alone. Vicky petted the kitten absently as she leaned over and kissed Percy again, this time more than the brief hello kiss they’d exchanged earlier. “We’ll have to take her to a vet and make sure she’s healthy. She’s so tiny right now.”

“Magical Menagerie has a veterinarian on staff. We can take him in, tomorrow. My shift doesn’t begin until noon, so I could do it, first thing in the morning. Hopefully we don’t need an appointment. I wonder what we could feed him? He’s too young for ordinary cat food, do you think?”

“We don’t even know if she's a he or a she,” Vicky pointed out with a wry grin. “You’ll have to have the vet check. They'll tell you what we should feed her, too. Meanwhile, maybe we can ask on the journals. Margot works for Magical Menagerie, she might have some idea. I have milk and turkey, I think, maybe she can have one of those tonight." Vicky scratched the kitten behind the ears, but when she went to set her down, the kitten's tiny claws caught in her shirt and she made the most pitiful noise. Vicky cooed and stood one finger down the soft fur. "It's okay, sweetie. I just need to get my journal so we can figure out how to take care of you."

The past couple of days had been so intense, what with the announcement of Gideon’s death and then his wake, it was rather refreshing to have something fluffy and cute to serve as a distraction from their woes. “Good idea,” Percy said, then noticed that the kitten was clinging to Vicky. “Here, let me take him.” He reached out his hands to carefully pry the kitten’s claws off her shirt. “I have a feeling it’s a boy,” he announced with confidence, then sank down upon the sofa to let the kitten rest upon his chest.

“And I think she’s a girl.” Vicky opened her journal as she sat on the couch next to Percy, then bumped her shoulder against his. “Let’s bet on it. Whoever is right gets to pick our next date.” She warded an entry to Margot Bones asking what they could feed the kitten until they could get her to a vet in the morning. “Loser has to do whatever the winner wants for the whole night.”

Percy’s eyebrows rose. “The whole night?” He idly wagged his finger at the kitten, who idly patted it with his paw. “Whatever the winner wants?” He smiled. “That leaves the door open for a wide variety of options.”

“That’s the point.” Vicky picked up the kitten and set her back in the box Percy had been keeping her in, then climbed onto Percy’s lap. She kissed him soundly and rested her forehead against his when she pulled away. “We can have all sorts of fun.”

To this, Percy laughed. “Why do I feel like the evening will revolve around taking care of a tiny kitten? We’ll need to find a babysitter.” He curled his arms around Vicky and idly stroked her hair, slyly adding, “The bet’s on. I already have an idea what I want to do.”

“So do I.” Vicky grinned and leaned into Percy’s touch, but the moment was ruined by the kitten attempting to climb out of the box and knocking it off the coffee table. She mewed and cried until Vicky picked her up and cradled her to her chest. “Oh, honey. You were supposed to be safe in there, not fall off the table!”

A new message appeared in her journal then, and she handed the kitten to Percy so she could pick it up and read it. “Margot says she’s young enough we can give her milk.” She looked down at the tiny animal cuddled against Percy’s chest and stroked her back with one finger. “If we feed you, will you behave long enough for me to thank Percy properly for bringing you home?”

An interruption was the last thing Percy wanted, even if it was in the form of a tiny ball of fluff. While Vicky was checking her journal, he looked the kitten in the eyes and said, “You’re going to be a little trouble maker, aren’t you? I think so.” When he then heard what Vicky had to say, Percy quickly responded, “What are we waiting for?” He wanted his reward. He smirked at Vicky and kissed her firmly upon the lips. “There’s more where that came from.”

Vicky slid off Percy’s lap and pulled a bottle of milk out of the icebox. All her bowels were bigger than the kitten, so she took out a saucer and poured a little into it and set it on the floor in front of the coffee table. “Come here, little one. Drink this.” The cat stated lapping eagerly at the milk, and Vicky climbed into Percy’s lap again. “Now, where was I?” She leaned in to kiss him one more time.