Severus Snape (prince_snape) wrote in valarlogs, @ 2014-08-13 08:26:00 |
|
|||
Entry tags: | !complete, neal cassidy (baelfire), severus snape |
Who: Neal Cassidy, Severus Snape and NPC Daisy Snape
What: Dinner and feeling out a new Babysitter
When: Wednesday, after This conversation
Where: Snape Household
Rating/Warnings: Low/None
Status: Complete when posted
Severus told Daisy that Neal, aka the knight in shining armor, would be coming over on Wednesday for dinner. Daisy cleaned her room and picked out which outfit she was going to wear… on Sunday. To say she was excited about this visit was a drastic understatement. She spent quite a bit of time making artwork for Neal, and Severus had it plastered on his fridge. Her mother called Severus to ask who Neal was, too, and Severus had to explain that he was the new babysitter.
Of course, Severus had done his due diligence, and had researched Neal to the best of his ability--everything except a credit check. He’d vetted Neal, and found that the man wasn’t a child molester or pedophile, and that the likelihood of him kidnapping Daisy or David was practically nil.
David was already in his chair with some baby food in front of him at the allotted time. Daisy was putting on her third dress of the evening, even though they’d only been home for half an hour.
In this day and age, you really had to research nannies and babysitters and such - because there were some fucked up people in the world, Neal knew that firsthand. But he was clean, having left behind a life of crime some time ago. And now he also worked at a ranch that catered to at-risk youth, so he liked to think he had an affinity for dealing with kids. Maybe because he just understood how their minds worked; he’d been through it all and then some, as a kid, and had probably grown up too fast. It all stemmed from not wanting to see any young person go through what he did. Like he was sympathetic to him.
So he was probably a good choice for new babysitter. Who would have thought you’d find one at Mickey D’s, and not just that, but a fellow OC dreamer? It’s a small world after all. And a world of laughter, a world of tears. Fuck that.
When he arrived at the Snape residence, he had a bucket of dirt for dessert. Not real dirt, but the shit with Oreos and cream cheese and cool whip and gummy worms poking out of the top. It was pretty kid-friendly, and delicious to boot. Not to mention pretty fuck-up proof for someone as inept at baking as Neal. Knocking on the door, he carried by the bucket by the handle, waiting for the telltale sound of a stampeding three-year-old to greet him.
The telltale sound of a stampeding three-year-old came just seconds after the knock. Along with squeals and a fit of giggles, followed by much slower footsteps and Severus Snape’s low voice saying “calm down, you’ll bowl him over,” muffled through the door.
The door opened. Severus was standing there wearing all black; his sleeves rolled up to the elbow. There was an ugly tattoo of a skull with a snake coming out of its mouth on his left forearm.
Daisy was wearing a princess dress and her Doc McStuffins stethoscope was dangling around her neck. She also had on large, duck-foot-shaped slippers that quacked when she walked. “Neal!” She squealed, obviously torn between wanting to be lifted up for a hug and feeling shy.
Severus smirked. “Come on in. David’s almost finished with his dinner, then I’ll get him to bed.”
“Heeeey, you,” Neal laughed as he saw Daisy there in her princess-doctor combination attire, dressed in the way only a toddler could pull off, and he set the bucket down so he could scoop her up for a hug - and even a bristly kiss on the cheek, which might have tickled a bit. Then he put her back on solid ground; hopefully that assisted with her shyness a bit. “I brought dessert, as promised.”
The sweet treat was presented to Sev, complete with a dusting of crushed Oreos on top and the gummy worms halfway in and halfway out, looking like they’d just crawled to the surface. “Thanks for having me over. Otherwise it was a Thai takeout night, most likely.” Not that there was anything wrong with jasmine rice, noodle dishes, and fragrant spices - but it was even nicer being someplace homey.
Sev’s smirk spread a little when he saw Neal pick up Daisy and give her a hug. He knew all too well how charming she was and how irresistible those three-year-old charms were. He accepted the dessert, raising an eyebrow at it. It looked like the sort of thing that Daisy would go crazy for, but he would never make himself. It looked like fun. Severus Snape wasn’t really into fun. But for Daisy he would make an exception. Always.
“You’re very welcome,” Severus responded, closing the door behind him. There were some pretty fantastic smells coming from the kitchen. Severus had made lasagna and garlic bread.
“I made a picture!” Daisy said, taking hold of Neal’s hand to drag him into the kitchen and to the fridge where she had pictures pinned with large, alphabet magnets. She tugged with grunts. “Come onnn!! Come look!”
“I didn’t know what your preferences were, I made vegetarian lasagna.” Severus added, hoping that would suffice. He set the dessert in the fridge and then moved back to David to get the baby ready for bed.
The smells just about got Neal drooling. He was quick to assure Sev, “Oh, don’t even worry, vegetarian lasagna sounds fantastic. You must be a heck of a better chef than yours truly,” then was of course distracted by the artistic stylings of Princess Doctor Daisy.
“You drew something? Let me see!” he encouraged, obviously super excited to be dragged along, and letting her win the tug of war battle quite easily as he headed for the kitchen to take in her masterpiece. “Is that it here?” The art tacked to the fridge with magnets was hard to miss. “It’s beautiful. Hey Dave,” he added to the baby who was bouncing in his highchair. That was a good enough greeting in response, gurgling and cooing.
Severus chuckled. He moved through the kitchen with ease, flipping a kitchen cloth over one shoulder. “I’m a chemist. Cooking is simple in comparison.” He wasn’t bragging, it was just a fact. Severus was actually an incredible cook--and that may have been part of the reason that Daisy was so open to new and different foods (which may change in the next couple of years)... He’d put a variety of foods in front of her from an early age.
While her father took David for a quick bath and then bed, Daisy beamed up at Neal in the kitchen. She motioned toward the fridge where there were plenty of drawings. “This one’s for you. I drew a mermaid and a unicorn and you’re there.” She pointed. If one squinted and assumed, the blobs of scribbles could look like a castle, a unicorn and a knight in shining armor.
Neal had actually never met a chemist before. That was an interesting profession - he just pictured labs bubbling over with simmering concoctions and stark white coats and mad scientist goggles. Would Daisy follow in those footsteps, or perhaps become an artist? She was well on her way, the doctor-princess she was.
“Wow, that’s amazing,” he said about the drawing featuring him. “You did a great job.” In his dreams, there were definitely unicorns back in the Enchanted Forest. But mermaids, in Neverland, they ate people and seemed to be perpetually angry at men. Not the best imagery for kids. “Can I have it? It’ll go front and center on my fridge at home.”
His assumptions about Severus’ job wouldn’t be too far from the truth. Sev took David to the bathroom, then the bedroom, and put the baby down to bed. He left Daisy alone with Neal, so they could talk art.
Daisy nodded. “I made it for you!” She said, and then reached up to move the magnets off of it to give it to him. Of course, once the magnets were off of it, the paper fell down to the floor. And Daisy scrambled to pick it up again.
Whoops! Neal swooped down to grab the fluttering drawing, and he set it on the kitchen table near one of the place settings. “I feel pretty flattered, that you made something just for me. So you like drawing, huh?” he asked Daisy. “What else are you into?” Besides playing pretend with her stethoscope. As for him, he couldn’t exactly remember having typical kid interests when he was that age and a bit older. His mom left when he was in kindergarten, and from then on, his father had never really been the same. It was difficult to make friends and play games with them when you were constantly getting evicted and moving elsewhere, from crappy apartment complex to crappy apartment complex.
Daisy was so proud when Neal said he liked her drawing. She beamed so brightly it was possible her face might split in half. Together they moved to the dinner table, and Daisy climbed up into her toddler booster. "I like drawing and Duplos and Doc Mcstuffins!" Was her reply.
To help out the budding artist, Neal boosted her up into her special throne and got her situated there. “Duplos, huh?” A chuckle escaped him, and actually, he kind of liked those things as well. Or Legos. Whatever the difference was, if there was even one at all - they were just larger, perhaps?
“Me too, maybe we could build something together sometime. A castle or...a clinic, right?” Yeah, because the future Doc McStuffins, riding on the coattails of her hero, definitely didn’t have a castle! Duh, Neal.
“Yes!” Daisy nearly squealed. “I have horses, too, and a lion and an elephant.” Because Daisy had all the farm and zoo animal Duplos--which were just larger Legos. Made by the same company and everything.
Severus came back into the dining room area a moment later. He patted Daisy’s head as he walked past. “You two all right?”
“We’re gonna build a castle!” Daisy said. Apparently, the idea of a clinic went right over her head.
A castle it was! “What she said,” Neal agreed, that crooked grin, comfortable making another appearance. “It’s been awhile since I’ve built a castle though, so I might be a little rusty. But I’ll give my all. You need any help, Sev?” he asked a moment later, though the chemist likely had it all under control. Definitely smelled like he did, and probably had exact measurements for a ‘pinch,’ a ‘sprinkle’ or a ‘dash.’ See, all that cooking stuff was just so not Neal’s thing.
Severus chuckled softly and shook his head. “You’ve only got a couple of minutes before dinner. Let’s play Duplos afterward, all right?” He gave Daisy a smile--a rare thing on his features--and then, using potholders on his hands, brought the lasagna out to the table. “Feel free to serve yourself.”
Then he moved to get a bottle of wine and Daisy’s milk.
Poor Sev, the smile probably cracked his face. But the lasagna smelled amazing, and Neal couldn’t wait to dig in. He’d be polite and make sure the little lady had her piece first, however. “How much do you want?” he asked, taking the spatula and touching it to a decent kid-appropriate sized square. “That much? Orrrrr....?” The utensil was moved out about an inch. And then across the whole pan. “You don’t want that much, do you?”
He was just teasing her. Lasagna was a great way to hide vegetables for the little ones but even they’d catch on and realize they were eating green stuff if the piece was a huge brick. Plus, she’d get a tummy ache!
Daisy laughed. “That much! That much!” She said, holding her hands out to show him how much she wanted. It was a lot. She loved the cheese the best. “That much!” She added, moving her hands out even further and laughing some more.
“Not too much. Remember, we have worms and dirt for dessert,” Severus said, moving back to the table. He set Daisy’s cup in front of her plate, then set down the bottle and wine glasses for the adults.
“Yeah, I made you dirt, Doctor Daisy,” Neal chimed in helpfully. “It’s delicious.” When concocting dessert, he had settled on dirt right away - it was actually between that and sand, which was similar in texture, just with vanilla pudding and graham cracker crumbs. But he assumed the little artist would like chocolate better. It seemed to be a safe bet.
A good-sized kiddie square was cut, and he placed it carefully on her plate. Then, when the adults had theirs and the wine (arguably the most important part of the meal), did he take his first bite. Fucking amazing, as predicted. “Wow, you weren’t kidding, I guess chemists really know their way around a recipe,” he praised.
Besides that, it was just nice to be involved in a family meal. Neal couldn’t remember the last time that happened. It would be something to enjoy for once, instead of eating alone. And out of a takeout box. He was glad he’d come over.
Daisy squealed with laughter again. “Eew! Dirt!” But she trusted her father, and she trusted her Knight in Shining armor. She settled into her booster chair and lifted her fork to start in on her food as soon as it was on her plate. They didn’t say prayers in the Snape Household.
Sev chuckled, swirling his fork around a strip of noodles. “Thank you.” He said, shaking his head. “It’s all about following instructions exactly. And possibly involving a little magic.” He’d have to send some leftovers home with his new friend. --weird, that thought. Severus Snape making friends.