Alright, new chapter. ;D In case anyone thought that I was hinting at something in the last chapter, sorry, but I don't intend on making Puck pregnant. XD What I meant in the last chapter was simply that since everyone was already making jokes with Puck, he and Clopin just decided to play on that and make things a little fun for themselves…and hey, any excuse to fool around, right?
Enjoy!
Walking Hearts
Chapter 4
"Well, Mr. and Mr. Trouillefou…"
"Goodfellow. My last name is Goodfellow," Puck sighed in exasperation, having explained himself to the care worker for at least the fifth time.
"Right, right, of course," the little man said quickly, fumbling around with the papers on his desk. "Sorry, we get so many, er…couples that um, have the same last names as one another…not sure who we're gonna end up offending…"
Puck and Clopin glanced at one another, each raising an eyebrow at the man's antics. He was a short little middle-aged fellow, with balding red hair and thick glasses that looked like they were doing more harm than good for the man's eyesight. He fumbled nervously through the papers on his desk, nearly unsettling a coffee mug that had grown cold from being out so long. The poor man was obviously distressed, not to mention overworked, but Clopin and Puck were beginning to get frustrated.
"Sir, if we could just get on with the paperwork…"
"Ah! Yes, here it is!" The older man gave a relieved smile, handing over a stack of papers to the couple. Unfortunately, as he did this, he managed to finish knocking over that coffee cup, spilling it all over the edge of his desk and right into the gypsy's lap.
Clopin instantly jumped back, annoyed that the liquid had soaked into his pants, which he'd just bought two days ago. The employee looked as though he were about to faint from horror at what he'd done, and tried to stutter out an apology while he wrung his thick, sweaty little hands. But before anyone could do much of anything, a silent, calming presence had suddenly entered the room, somehow drawing the attention of all three men to a new figure who'd entered the room.
"Herbert, thank you, darling…but perhaps you'd better let me take over now," a kind, motherly voice laughed gently, the owner of whom had placed a delicate hand on the fat little man's shoulder. "Perhaps you should go and get yourself a new cup of coffee in the break room."
"Y-yes, r-right away, Miss," the man stuttered uncontrollably, his face growing as red as the little hair that was left on his head. He quickly gathered a few papers in his arms, turning to waddle quickly out of the room. The woman smiled after him, shaking her head as she did.
Turning back to Clopin and Puck, she gave a concerned expression over the darker man's clothes, and quickly reached for a box of tissues on the desk's previous owner's surface.
"You'll have to forgive Herbert. He's a good employee, but he can be a little trying sometimes," the woman sighed, handing the tissues over to Clopin with a smile. Her perfectly white teeth were framed by a pair of bright pink lips, which matched the rest of her attire. From her crisp pink business suit to her long, shimmering blond hair, the woman was obviously a business-type beauty.
"Now, let's get on with our business, shall we?" She smile, motioning for Clopin to sit down again. The gypsy cautiously complied, keeping a careful watch on the woman. He stole a glance at Puck, who, strangely enough, had a knowing smile on his face. Ignoring for the moment, he turned back to the woman.
"Yes, I think that we can all agree to that," Clopin nodded. They had been at the adoption clinic for at least two hours, filling out paperwork and speaking with various employees the entire time. This would be the last person they'd have to visit today, or so they'd been told, before they were at last able to pick up their child.
"Ah, here we are. This is the last sheet of paperwork you'll have to fill out for today," the pink woman smiled, handing a thick sheet of paper to Puck. The elf blinked, surprised at the size. Looking back up at her, he gave a confused look.
"Wait, so…this is it? You're not giving us something thirty pages long again?"
The woman smiled, shaking her head. "Nope. This is you final sheet. You'll have to sign one or two more when you pick up your child in a week or so, but that's just standard release forms. This is basically just making sure that you know what you're getting into."
The two men looked over the paper, signing various areas on the paper. The terms were simple enough; by signing this, you ensure that you will continue to care for your child through any conditions, yaddah yaddah. It reminded them slightly of their wedding vows. A few were slightly different, though, and asked more personal questions; will you keep your child warm, will you hold them when they're scared. It made the tricksters think just a little more about what they were getting into.
When at last they finished filling out the paper, they handed it back to the woman, who smiled gratefully. Putting the work away into one of the desk's drawers(how she found it underneath all the skewed paperwork, they'd never know), she looked back up at the men thoughtfully.
"Would you like to see her?" She asked after a moment of silence, still smiling. Clopin and Puck looked at each other, confused. From what they'd been told, the children weren't actually in
this part of the building; they were kept in an area similar to a boarding school, or a maternity ward for the littler ones.
"I have a picture of her here," she explained, pulling out a small photo from the desk. Clopin and Puck each let out an audible "oh," to which the woman smiled, and took the photo into their hands.
She was small. That was the first thought that went into each of their minds. She had short, dark hair, and pinkish-tan skin. The picture was obviously taken when she was very young, as her skin still held the wrinkled texture of a newborn's. Her little eyes were closed, and she appeared to be sleeping beneath a small, pink blanket.
Clopin, who was a bit more sensitive in the nature of orphans, looked up at the woman. "How did she…?"
"Come to be with us? We don't know," the woman shrugged. "We just found her on the doorstep of the agency a month or two ago. We don't know anything about her, except her name. Since we don't know her actual birthday, we just go by the day that we found her, Novermber 18th. She couldn't have been more than two weeks old when she showed up."
"November 18th?" Puck blinked, looking up suddenly. "It's only just now December!" Their daughter was only going to be a month old???
The woman nodded. "Yes. That's…not a problem, is it?"
Clopin and Puck looked at each other. "No, of course not," the gypsy answered, shaking his head. "We just…weren't expecting her to be so…young."
The woman smiled. "Oh, I know they can be a handful. I've got one of my own," she laughed. "But, he's all grown up now. I just wish I could have been a part of that…" Her smile falter for a moment, lost in some previous regret.
Clopin exchanged a glance with Puck, a little concerned by the woman's sudden change of attitude. "Forgive me for prying, m'am, but-" Clopin started, but was cut off by the woman's hand.
"No, no, it's nothing," she smiled, looking sincere. "Just…listen. I want you two to do something for me. If you promise to take care of this child, I can guarantee that the rest of this adoption process will be simple. Just please,
promise me that you'll be there and take care of her," the woman said, leaning forward to look at the men almost desperately.
Clopin and Puck turned to one another, then back at the woman. Cautiously, they nodded, a little confused as to why she was so serious all of a sudden.
"M'am, on my honor as a king, I can promise you that I will protect this child for as long as I walk this earth," Clopin answered, lowering his head respectfully.
Puck nodded in agreement. "By Oberon's will, I swear that I will watch over this child as long as my immortal life allows."
The woman stared at the men for a moment, checking for sincerity. After a moment, when she was apparently satisfied, the woman smiled, sitting back appreciatively.
"Thank you very much. Well, I suppose you two are done for the day. We'll give you a call when we're ready for you to pick her up." She stood, shuffling a few papers before walking out of the room. "It was nice speaking with you gentlemen!"
Puck and Clopin each stood, shrugging at one another as they walked out of the room. Each were busy thinking, and as a result, walked along silently towards the exit.
"Puck…" Clopin started, clearing his throat. He wasn't planning on saying what was actually on his mind, but instead wanted to change subjects to think about. "That woman…was she human?"
Puck shook his head. "No. I could tell that you were curious, though," he smirked glancing at the gypsy. It seemed that he wanted to change his course of thinking as well. "I was a little surprised to see her there, in all honesty. But, she is the goddess of marriage…"
"Goddess?!" Clopin said, shocked. "I-I thought that she was…just a fae! She was a
goddess?"
Puck gave the other a rather sharp look. "
Just a fae?" He said rather pensively, to which the other rolled his eyes. Sighing, Puck continued, "But yes. Hera, the immortal wife of Zeus…is working at an adoption clinic."
Clopin laughed, shaking his head. "So, I guess the child she was talking about was…"
"Hercules. Yep."
Clopin shook his head incredulously. "Oh wow. That was…wow. Anyway, we should probably get home. No doubt we'll have an entourage waiting for us," the gypsy rolled his eyes, putting an arm around Puck's shoulder to pull him along.
----
Taylor practically tackled the gypsy to the ground as he and Puck stepped in the door, immediately shooting the man with a million questions. Grell followed shortly after, and attempted to do the same to Puck, but the elf quickly backed away, causing the shinigami to make a face plant against the tile flooring.
As Taylor sat up on his chest, Clopin scowled at her. "How the hell did you get in my house?" He growled, to which Taylor rolled her eyes. It wasn't her fault that the gypsy didn't know how to find a decent lock!
Once they'd managed to pry Taylor away from the gypsy and had related their visit to the adoption center, the self-invited guests were ready to go, but not before squeezing the two men in a large group hug. When at last Taylor and Grell had left, Clopin and Puck each a gave a tired sigh, smiling weakly at one another. It was time they went to bed, considering the fact that it was after eleven now.
As they each climbed into bed beside one another, pulling the covers up over themselves as they curled up together, each of the two men were busy thinking. In just one week, they would have a child there with them. The house would no longer just be "theirs," but would belong to another little creature as well. The reality of the fact was just beginning to sink in.
"Do you think we can do it?" Puck whispered, voicing what they were each thinking. Clopin paused, contemplating an answer.
"I…think so," he whispered back, holding the other a little closer. "I mean, we've both helped raise children before. I think that we'll be decent parents."
"The question is…will we be good enough?" Puck said.
Clopin paused again. "I…I don't know. To tell you the truth, I don't think that parents ever really think that parents ever feel like they're good enough. But we'll do the best we can, won't we,
mon amour?"
Puck smiled, nodding as he rested his head against the other's shoulder. With another tired sigh, he sleepily kissed the gypsy's lips, the both of them at last falling into a peaceful sleep.
===
Enjoy!