Who: Sam Winchester, Derpy Hooves, Percy Weasley, James Wilson What: Double Date When: Saturday 4/27 Where: Bar Rating/Warnings: Status: Complete
In the way of true double dates, the two couples had met at the place where the magic show was being held. While Percy and Wilson had been early (of course), Deryn and Sam had been right on time (okay, maybe a little late. Deryn had tripped down her own set of apartment stairs and some first aid in the way of neon band-aids had been required). Either way, the chance for speaking hadn’t become opportune until after the show.
Deryn had been utterly delighted by it. It was fun and cute, and the magician’s stage presence had been fun. Sadly, despite her best hand-waving efforts, she hadn’t been picked for any of the participation bits.
Now, she was rocking back and forth, heel to toe as the four of them stood outside the building. “That was so fun,” she said, and even though the exclamation point hadn’t been there, she hoped everyone knew she wanted there to be one. “Now what should we do?”
Sam’s hand was wrapped around Deryn’s, swinging as she rocked back and forth. He gave a half-shrug, glancing around at the other people who were leaving the building. It seemed there was a lot of chatting, a lot of laughter, smiling faces. It was a nice night for it, too, warm for this time of year and clear.
“Drinks?” It was still relatively early. Sam’s suggestion didn’t really take into mind that Deryn might need to be home early to get up for work the following morning.
Wilson threaded his fingers through Percy’s, nodding and smiling. “If that works out with everyone, sure.” He smiled at Deryn’s knees. “I like your Band-Aids. I should get some for the hospital. IVs and that.” He hadn’t been wrong in his estimation that he’d like the spunky girl.
“Drinks work,” Percy said, because he had the next day off -- and might not have another full day free from work for the next foreseeable future, what with his boss taking a month off for personal time. Might as well get his outings in while he still could.
The magic show had been fun in its own right, but Percy had been slightly critical of it. It was hard not to, considering. Still, he gripped Wilson’s hand tighter, and watched Deryn bounce and grin and basically just vomit sunshine all over the place. Sam seemed to do it when she was around too, and that was nearly a study in character for Percy.
“Oh thanks,” Deryn’s smile was dazzling, and she didn’t seem embarrassed at all for needing the band-aids. Anyway, the yellow, green and pink made nice accents to her sundress. “I buy them a lot when they’re on sale.” She was clearly no stranger to needing them. “Oooh. Also! Yes! Drinks!” A pause. “Where?” The tiny blonde seemed ever-excited. And why shouldn’t she be? Magic shows were just as awesome as making new friends.
“There’s a place not far from here,” Sam suggested. “I went there once with my brother. They’ve got a couple pool tables, we can set up camp there?” He didn’t really care where they went so long as they all had a chance to have a drink and chat a bit. It’d been an interesting show, a good night so far, and he wasn’t ready for it to end just yet.
Wilson nodded, looking at Percy to make sure the other man was okay with the idea. Percy was sometimes polite to a fault, and Wilson wanted to make sure that his boyfriend was comfortable at all times. But he really was having a nice time.
Percy might not have understood the blonde’s need for being excessively bubbly, but even he wasn’t judgemental enough to fault her for it. He returned Wilson’s look, expression pleasantly blank as if asking what?. The two of them often spoke without saying anything.
“That works,” he agreed, “We’ll meet you there.” Because two cars, man.
Deryn jumped, and she still didn’t get to the height of anyone else around her. Sometimes she considered just climbing up Sam and seeing what would happen. “Hooray,” she said, and again intoned exclamation marks that were just not there.
--
This time, Sam and Deryn arrived first. They’d found a little table, and Deryn was sitting on one of the tall bar chairs, swinging her feet that came nowhere near the ground as she sipped on a beer. “That was really fun,” she was telling Sam (again).
Sam laughed. He’d heard her say it a few times now, and he believed her every time. He had his own beer in front of him, and was nursing it as well. “It was. Maybe we should go to more magic shows.” He thought aloud, turning the glass around on its spot on the table. He was making a nice, big condensation ring. “They make you happy, don’t they?”
Wilson grinned as he walked into the bar with Percy, still holding his hand. He was glad to be able to have a pint - though he’d limit himself to that, as he had to drive when they left. He couldn’t help but laugh when he saw Deryn with a beer. Somehow, he’d expected her to have a root beer float or something.
She was old enough to drink! Had been, in fact, for a few years now. It was probably a bit of an offputting sight, though. “Well, yeah,” she was saying to Sam -- who even sitting was had at least a foot of height on her. Really, he was so tall. “It was super fun. We should learn magic -- Oh! Hi again!”
“Hello,” Percy greeted, letting go of Wilson’s hand only to remove his suit jacket and place it on the back of a chair. “Fancy meeting you here.”
It wasn’t a good joke, but Deryn laughed anyway.
Sam sat up a bit and waved to the bartender, motioning for a couple more beers for his friends who’d just joined them. He didn’t seem to think that Deryn’s laughter was anything unusual. Because, well, it wasn’t. The bartender brought out some drinks for Percy and Wilson, then retreated behind the bar once more.
“So... darts, billiards, jukebox... and it’s not even that crowded for a Saturday night,” Sam said, then gulped from his glass.
Wilson took an appreciative sip of his beer and nodded. “I was actually a bit of a pool shark when I was in med school. It was a good way to unwind, and it got me free beer.” He grinned at Percy. “Free anything’s fantastic when you’re in school.”
“Can’t argue with that,” Percy agreed -- because even on scholarships he hadn’t been particularly well off. Percy had been particularly fond of the random school barbeques his first year or so. “So... pool?” He wasn’t as bad at pool as he was at minigolf -- he’d allow the sport that much credit, anyway. It was a bit like math, actually.
“Teams,” Deryn said in a tone that might have been sage if she didn’t always have a near-giggle bubbling out of her. “Who’s best?? That’s the team I wanna be on.”
Percy thought that the girl had a point, there.
Sam laughed. “Well, I have a feeling that you should pair up with Wilson, then. Since he’s probably the best out of the four of us.” Of course, in his dreams, Sam and Dean had spent several years living completely off of pool winnings alone. They were what you might call ‘sharks’ back in their day. Sam in the real world might not have been quite up to par, but he was formidable.
“Oh, I wouldn’t say that. That’s what someone good at pool would say.” Wilson smiled, winking at Deryn and grinning.
“Yes,” Deryn said, bright blue eyes going as serious as her general energetic self would allow. “I choose you.” It was whispered out, almost cheekily. And now, James Wilson was that Pokemon. The pool one. You know the one.
Percy had the mind to look a little nervous. And oddly jealous. “Er. I guess we’re partners, Sam. I apologize ahead of time.”
“I think I might be able to float us along.” Sam said, giving Percy a knowing smile. At least maybe they’d be a little more evenly matched splitting up this way. He moved over to a billiard table and racked up the balls, leaving his drink on a nearby table.
Wilson blinked at Deryn, then couldn’t help but crack up. “Uh-oh, I think your boyfriend is going to beat us terribly, little one.” He ruffled her hair and then grinned at his boyfriend.
Deryn only grinned and scrunched her eyes closed at the head ruffle. It wasn’t a look that someone should have made when they were legal enough to drink at a bar. She managed it. “No,” she said, “They haven’t got a chance!” She’d decided she liked Wilson. He was a bit like a nice uncle, or something.
She bounced up to find a pool stick that wasn’t taller than her. Good luck, Deryn. Godspeed.
Percy, who was usually a kind soul (honest!) gave Wilson a very pointed look. “Muppet,” he said, leaning close because inside jokes were only for two people, man. “I told you so.”
Sam had no idea what Muppet meant. He’d just barely heard the word--and what other word could it possibly have been?--as he reached for a pool cue and some chalk. “Your break? Or shall we flip a coin?”
Wilson chuckled, leaning in to kiss Percy gently, nibbling his lower lip. “So you did, barrister.” He stood up and took a cue and chalked it up, smiling. “I’ll break. Never was too good at that part.” He leaned over the table, removing the holder doohickey that held the balls in place, and then neatly broke, sending a stripe into the corner pocket.
It was a nice break. Percy might have been a bit concerned over it if he was the type who worried about winning. As it was, he was feeling a bit smug about the lip nibbling. And the fact that if he looked a bit sad enough, chances were Wilson might let him win, anyway.
Really though, his goal for the night was to stand around looking as not-awkward as possible until someone told him it was his turn to go at the game. Because knowing the rules to teams pool wasn’t something he’d ever thought prudent.
Deryn was smiling up at Sam, and it was a little weird how such a little girl could look like she might just eat a man. But she managed. “We’re going to win,” she told the overly tall not-redheaded lawyer. “And then you’ll have to buy me lunch tomorrow.”
Sam gave a little laugh. As much as he wanted to show off his skills to Wilson and Percy, he would let Deryn win at anything. He always wanted to see that grin on her face, always wanted to hear the happiness in her voice. He shook his head. “Not a chance, D. But I’ll buy you lunch anyway.”
Wilson simply smiled as he took his next shot, lining it up and neatly knocking two stripes into two separate holes. “Make sure he buys you dinner, too.”
“And breakfast,” Percy felt the need to put in. But then was a little horrified when he couldn’t take it back, since he’d just made a terrible implication in regards to their relationship. It was very, very difficult to imagine Sam and Deryn doing anything that wasn’t holding hands or buying band-aids. And he’d just burned an image into his own brain that he really wished he hadn’t. He pinched the bridge of his nose and decided that he was very, very interested in his beer.
Deryn only giggled. Because she was possibly actually evil in a tiny adorable package of exclamation marks.
Sam laughed. “Oh, I’ll make breakfast.” He said, only compounding the strangeness that he could see on Percy’s face. The idea that Wilson was sinking so many striped balls was a little disheartening. They would have some catching up to do.
Wilson couldn’t help but find Percy’s confusion adorable. As such, he “accidentally” scratched, ending his streak early. He hoped nobody would be able to notice that it was on purpose.
As if Percy wouldn’t notice something like that. His lips quirked into something that might have been the start of a smile, but didn’t seem to want to go any further than that. Sam could go first, he’d hold off on showing everyone that he didn’t know what hand-eye coordination was for a while longer. Instead, he settled his hands on either side of Wilson’s waist and watched.
“You can cook?” Deryn seemed surprised. And also a little pouty over the scratch move on the table, but not enough to actually pout. Which didn’t make sense, but she was a dream pony and she could do what she wanted, thanks.
Another laugh. “Of course I can cook!” Sam responded with a shake of his head. “What, do you really think I rely on you and fast food restaurants completely for nourishment?” He moved around the table--having caught on that Wilson scratched on purpose--and lined up his shot. Solid sunk. And a second a minute later. Time to start evening the score.
Wilson smiled, leaning backward into Percy’s touch when he felt hands in their rightful place on his hips. “Percy forgets to eat sometimes if I’m not around.” He grinned, turning his head and snogging his boyfriend briefly. He was guessing that Sam and Percy would end up winning.
Percy had no problem with that. Winning, that was. Better yet if he didn’t have to do much for it. He did have the advantage of going after Deryn though, and mean as it sounded, it’d probably make his skills look passable. The snog was taken, returned and then he ducked his head down a little on the shy side. Public affection wasn’t a problem, but he wasn’t a terribly overt person in any regard. “I do,” he agreed, with a half shrug. “And I didn’t know how to do anything that didn’t involve a microwave before we met.”
Deryn only tsked and shook her head at that. She wasn’t a great cook, but she sufficed well enough despite all that fire and burning. And she could bake the hell out of some muffins. “I want pancakes,” she said, already planning out the hypothetical breakfast. “With chocolate chips.” She poked Sam in the side with a finger, because she was not against cheating terribly in order to win.
The poke was enough to do it. His shot went askew, and he turned to give her a playful glare. “What, no sprinkles and whipped cream?” ...naughty thoughts were naughty. Though, pretty wonderful, too.
Even Wilson had to nosewrinkle at that. That was just going the right way for a yeast infection. He covered up his nosewrinkle by play gnawing at Percy’s shoulder.
Oh, Wilson, gross. Stop being such a doctor. Oh. You can’t help it. Percy patted his doctor’s fluffy hair and decided not to comment on anything ever again, because he’d made this happen. And it was weird.
Deryn on the other hand, took it literally, and was really just delighted about the idea of dessert pancakes for breakfast. She giggled, bounced a little, and moved to take her shot. What were they? Stripeys?
It didn’t matter, the girl managed to hit the cue ball hard enough to go clacking and bouncing off the table.
Sam gave a chuckle. His girlfriend was so cute. And she was going to make sure he won this game. “Good one, D,” then hopped off after the ball to pick it up and hand it over to Percy. “I believe that’s a scratch.”
Wilson fistbumped the girl who clearly had played pool maybe once in her life. “Team Scratch. What what.”
Why yes, that had sounded terribly awkward. He’d done it on purpose, if only to scrub his and Percy’s brains. They were going to have to get up to some grade A debauchery later.
Oh. What even. Was that? Percy went pink, shook his head and moved to take his turn. He stared at the table calculatingly for a long moment before settling the cue ball down and lining up his shot. He might have stuck his tongue out a little in thought. Either way, with the kitchen advantage, he easily sunk a solid.
“Pool is hard,” Deryn said, and didn’t much sound like she cared even as she burst into a fit of giggles over the fist bump. Definitely. He was definitely someone’s nice uncle. He could stay.
Sam lifted a hand for a high-five with Percy. That was a pretty good shot, especially coming from someone who said he couldn’t play. Or... gave that impression. Had Percy actually said it? In any case, he gave his friend a high-five, then moved around the table to sneak a kiss against Deryn’s hair, cuddling her against his side for a moment. THEN it was time for more beer.
The tongue thing made Wilson kind of weak in the knees, but two could play at the vaguely cheatery game. It was Team Scratch vs. Team Kitchen, and if Team Scratch had to cheat, he could.
Wilson pulled out his reading glasses to examine his beer bottle, wondering if he’d ever even worn them around Percy. “Huh,” he murmured, pretending to be super interested in the proof level of Sam Adams.
Now that was dirty pool! Percy blinked. Blinked again. Stared a bit. “James,” he said, in a tone that was both a warning and a code for Later. Possibly even a code for Later With Those Glasses On. “I -- was not aware you carried those around with you.” And of course he didn’t manage the next shot. In fact, he possibly didn’t manage hitting the stupid cue ball. He was very pleased Sam had been at the bar for that one.
Deryn was all smug smiles and interested looks. And while she might not have come off as the most astute of the bunch (read here: she wasn’t.), she could only cross her arms and jut her hip out a little. “This is gonna be a long game.”
Sam came back with another round of beers, and frowned a bit. “Percy. You’re supposed to hit the white one.” He said, shaking his head and tut tut’ing. Though, playfully, of course. And he passed out the beers while he did it.
Wilson looked up and smiled innocently. “I didn’t realize these were so high proof for beer!” He tucked his glasses back into his jacket pocket and hummed to himself as he went to take his next shot.
“That was awesome,” Deryn clearly did not care about that sounding conspiratorial when she told Wilson she approved of his cheating. She’d changed her opinion of him from Nice Uncle to Nice-But-Pervy Uncle.
“Thanks Sam,” Yay Beer! And then a tip-toed hop in a kiss.
“You’re an awful man,” Percy bemoaned, going a bit pink. He wasn’t sure how far he was willing to go in this game of one-upmanship cheatery, considering he hadn’t actually knowingly participated in it yet. He was going to blame the Muppet.
Perhaps the lawyers in the room were the honest ones? Irony? Guys?
Sam didn’t have a chance to return the kiss, though, because she had to jump. It was brief. And he grinned a little at her, thinking she was the cutest thing ever. He didn’t even care about the cheating/distracting/morallyambiguous whatever was going on. He turned to Wilson. “That makes it your go.”
Wilson gave a salute, chalking again and pacing the table to line up his shot. Suddenly, he wanted to play less pool and more ‘see-how-fast-boyfriend-can-drive-whilst-doing-naughty-things-in-the-car’. It was a popular game in Europe. Really.
Well, perhaps they should go to Europe then, because speeding was totally against the law. Jeez, Wilson. ...Okay, maybe he’d do a few over if it got them home faster. Percy realized quite suddenly that he both loved and hated pool. No man should bend over in public like that. Percy had his face in his hand so fast he nearly slapped himself. “I---” but sometimes there were just no words.
Deryn looked between the two men, and then looked at Sam. She rose her eyebrows, smiled brightly, and had nothing to say about anything at all. Because really, sometimes there were just no words.