Starring:
Guest Starring:
Julius and Caesar
Summary: Nathan brings home one more puppy than he intended to bring, but that's okay. He sics 'em on Heidi.
Date It Happened: 4th of June, 2007
More Puppy Than You Can Handle
Petrelli Estate, Guest Room
This is a very bizarre morning. Nathan isn't very used to sneaking into someone's bedroom, holding two rottweiler puppies that are strangely heavy and dense for their size, and won't /quit moving/. But here he is, standing somewhere around the foot of Heidi's bed, glancing down at the squirming animals in his arms. The things he does. Both puppies have a bow on their collar - blue and red, very patriotic - that was certainly not his touch, but rather ingenious, so he's not going to complain.
For a moment, he contemplates the probability that he's attempting to win his wife's heart back through abstract humiliation. Yeah. More than likely.
Then, one of the puppies - blue ribbon, named Caesar - yips loudly. Curse you, puppy! You are giving the game away! Screw it. Nathan promptly sets the dogs down on the bed. Have at it. Luckily, Nathan made sure they were walked and everything before they were delivered - that doesn't really stop them from being hyperactive, however, and they go on a mission to investigate this new terrain of bed and whatever happens to be in it.
A bizarre morning, indeed. Heidi actually got a night of sleep now that Monty's adjusted to A) Having the broken arm, and B) taking pain medication for it. She's /pretty sure/ it just knocked him out last night, and she's not complaining. Anyway, he isn't complaining as much, because Simon tells him it's not as cool to complain.
The point here is that Heidi is so sound asleep, she somehow misses Nathan entering the guest bedroom with two puppies in his arms. Two large puppies. Two /Rottweiler/ puppies. It's possible that after a couple days of trying to deal with two Rottie puppies, she'll call Peter and kill him over the phone, but we're getting ahead of ourselves here. Snuggled comfortably in bed, Heidi…
…Snores. Don't tell anyone, Nathan.
She doesn't wake up when the puppy yips, though she does stir, eyebrows lowering, snoring stopping as she starts to traverse into the land of wakefulness. At this moment, though, she's having a dream about an earthquake… One that kind of sounds like puppies. Which is weird, and doesn't make sense. Blue eyes open, squinting against the light in the room as she first sees Nathan, then sees a PINK TONGUE RIGHT IN HER FACE—
"Wha— " Suddenly wide awake, she pushes herself up so she can sit, and there are two puppies in her lap, and Nathan is standing at the foot of her bed, and she's looking at him as if he's got nine eyes. "…Nathan?!"
The puppies are excited. They are, in fact, /very excited to see Heidi/ and climb over each other to lick her face. Nathan, meanwhile, watches on in amusement, because this is kind of worth it. Too bad he didn't have a camera to immortalise the moment of 'omg puppies wtf', but that may have gotten him killed. Not conducive to being the best husband and father ever.
"Morning, honey," he says, when she spots him, and flashes her a bright smile. And because Nathan wants her to /enjoy/ this experience rather than, you know, get mauled, he moves to sit down on the side of her bed and pull one of the puppies back from her - the blue ribboned larger puppy of the two - so she can process them one at a time. He can deal with an arm full of puppy - he's dressed in casual day clothes, apparently not planning to head out into the professional world any time soon. "Have a good sleep?"
Puppies are excited to see anyone, though, aren't they? Is there anyone a puppy doesn't like? Granted, Heidi's probably a safe bet as far as any puppies are concerned, because she does love animals. Her arms wrap around the red-ribboned one that Nathan's left with her, and she smiles. It still hasn't sunk in that these are here to stay, but it likely will soon. There's a slight lapse in /everything/ from Heidi, kind of like a beat, and that's when she gets it. Puppies /in the house./
Oh god, they're so cute. "Nathan, these are— " Rottweilers. They grow up to be HUGE. Except with the one licking her face, she really can't complain, because she just wants to hug him and she's totally won over and Nathan has nothing to worry about. She laughs, eyes meeting Nathan's again, with a distinct lack of that guardedness that they've had lately. Like she's seeing him for the first time.
Small talk of good sleep is pushed aside. In fact, she might have not even heard the question, because the puppy is lying upside-down in her lap now, attempting to catch its own feet. "Puppies?" she asks. "Do the boys know ye— Oof." Puppy in her face. It has her hair. TIME TO PLAY TUG OF WAR WITH THE HAIR!
Yes, that's right, get caught up in the sheer joy of PUPPIES. This is the best 10 seconds ever. Especially when she smiles like that. Something… lifts. As if the eternal pressure of this whole situation has eased a fraction. "The boys don't know yet, I wanted— " Nathan shifts to attempt to untangle the puppy from his wife's hair. This means the blue ribboned one gets free, but seems more content in attacking his littermate's ear. "I wanted to run 'em by you beforehand."
…well considering they are already in the house, and paid for, maybe this is a bit of a lie. Nathan reaches out to ear-skritch a puppy. "You like 'em? I figured it might make Monty feel better about not getting to do all the summer stuff Simon gets to do," he says. That is, after all, some of the reason - this isn't just about getting in Heidi's good graces. Just partially.
Their relationship isn't completely repaired. It's already on its way, though, even if Nathan may or may not know that the reason Heidi stays in the guest bedroom is because she still cries. It's hard not to, knowing that the person you married isn't the person you thought they were, the person you trusted for almost two decades. This helps, it makes up for some things. The gesture is appreciated, even if it's for the boys, too. It's something to take her mind off the affair.
Not a no-strings-attached gift by any stretch of the imagination. These puppies are going to be a whole lot of work.
She sneaks a glance, and… "More boys," is said dryly, as she gives Nathan that Look that says 'Okay, /FINE,/' but really translates to 'Of course I'd never say no.' "This house is full of boys. Spike was supposed to fix— " She's cut off in mid-statement by a blue-ribboned puppy in her face. "Yes, yes, you're adorable. So are you guys brothers?" She looks up at Nathan again, still smiling. Obviously this wasn't a terrible idea if she's smiling.
Peter said it aptly when he described this as a distraction, not a solution. Nathan can accept that. It gives them a reason to pretend like things aren't as messed up as they are. "They were the last of their litter," he confirms, here and there reaching out a hand to pet a puppy, because if there is ANY animal in the world Nathan can like, it's dogs. He even used to own one, once upon a time, and he's even gotten used to Spike, so.
"I was going to just get the one, but." No, he's not gonna give Peter any credit - he /was/, had this proven to be a bad idea, but now that Heidi is all smiles, it can be considered Nathan's, now.
He reaches out to pick up the red ribboned puppy. "This guy's named Julius, the other one is Caesar." He definitely decided this already - no Spike/Spica confusion for the puppies. He loves his boys, but they're worse at naming than he is. Which is… saying something.
Leaning back against the wall behind the bed, Heidi allows the puppies to climb all over her as they like. Big paws… "You know they're going to get huge, right?" she asks. At least they have a house that's big enough. They'll need proper training, too, but not when they're this small. Now, they'll just get to enjoy them while they're all cute an innocent and non-drooly. And also while they have stinky puppy breath, which just adds to their charm.
Big brown eyes meet Heidi's for a moment, and she laughs, reaching out for the pup's ears. So soft! Of course, as soon as her hands are near his face, he tries to chew on them, though this is probably going to be fairly constant until they're a few months old. "You named them already?" she asks. At least they're good names. Pulling Caesar into a hug and a cuddle, she baby-talks to him. Something along the lines of a lot of hewwos, and cutsie-oogies, and seezie, and squeals, and the like. Yeah, Nate, you did good. "Okay, okay, they can stay."
As if that was ever up for debate. "So what made you decide to get puppies?"
'Seezie'? You poor thing. Julius will probably be called Julie, now. Nathan leans back to avoid face licking, dragging the dog away from him to set down on the floor, but Julius is now determined, tail wagging like mad as he tries to climb on to his new owner. "They'll get huge, but I figure the boys can grow up with 'em," he says, as he keeps trying to deflect the puppy. No, Nathan really hasn't given that part much thought, about how having huge drooling rottweilers might be a very bad move and he can kiss a lot of his beautiful antique furniture goodbye. But it's been a while since he's owned a dog. You don't care about that stuff when you're 10, do you.
At the question, Nathan shrugs, and moves to sit/lean against the headboard. He's not really invading Heidi's space, just getting comfortable, as a dog occupies his lap and yips. "I've been thinking about getting us all a dog for a while," he says, truthfully. "I figured I'd wait for when the kids are older, it'll show them some responsibility, but… why wait." A lot… is going unvoiced, there, and he occupies his attention with the puppy
Seezie is cute, and so is Julie, and it's perfect because they're puppies, and puppies should have cutesy names. In any case, while Nathan's avoiding face-licking, Heidi seems to now be completely covered in rottweiler spit, from her hair to her arms. It manages to be not pretty and beautiful at the same time somehow, because she's laughing and smiling and otherwise in an excellent mood.
Already, she's going over what they're going to have to do in her head. They can try to train the dogs themselves — to an extent — but it's probably going to be necessary to get a trainer. Especially given the fact that there's two of them, and, yes, they probably will try to eat the furniture. And shoes. And the cat. And everything else. Again, she laughs, this time heartily. "You really have no idea what you're in for, do you?"
But they're so cute.
At the same time, she knows what this is, and even if she sees it for that— Sure, maybe there's some truth to it, and the kids should have a dog, or dogs now, as the case may be. Reaching out to take Nathan's hand, to show that she's not mad (And instantly, there's a puppy chewing on them, YAY), she says, "This was a good idea. You did good. But you don't have to try to buy me, Nathan. I do love you, I hope you know that."
"We can get trainers for them," Nathan argues, "and— ow." Julius is intent to prove him wrong as he play-bites Nathan's hand a little harder than before. Nathan rolls the puppy over and off his lap, the dog falling on to the bed with a surprised yip, but recovers quickly, only to pounce his hand again. That hand that is taken by Heidi before the puppy can, and Nathan glances to his wife warily, looking for a trace of indignance or… anything negative. He relaxes a fraction when he doesn't see it. He's made too many mistakes already. "I know, and I love you," he says. "I wasn't…"
Well he was, even if he's not willing to admit it to himself. He and Peter even brushed on this motivation, back at the pet store. "I wasn't thinking that getting dogs would make things right again," Nathan says, because that at least is the truth. "I just wanted to do something for us. All of us." Rather than take away.
Welcome to having a puppy. And they get double. Nice work, Petrelli, but it'll work out. Always does!
He's trying so hard, and Heidi's not about to fault him for that. Segments of calm are interspersed between moments of unease and worry. If he's gone, she wonders where he is more than ever. It's not as bad as it was, and this moment just proves that things don't always have to be strained between them. It's not just the puppies, either, though the puppies do help. It's hard to be stressed out around puppies.
For the first time in a long time, she leans against him without feeling as if she needs to. She wants to, she's comfortable. As Caesar noses his way under one of her arms, and Julius sprawls across her legs, Heidi can feel herself getting teary. Happy tears, for once. "You know, this is why I married you."
Nathan's arm goes around her shoulders so she can lean comfier, only too happy to welcome the contact. The puppies are doing their thing, romping on the bed and his wife and his legs as if this was totally their new territory. In the long run, Nathan may find himself phoning up Peter to kill him over the phone /also/ for talking him into buying two dogs, but for now…
He glances Heidi's way at her statement, giving her shoulders a slight squeeze. It's touching and he's not sure how to respond, or if he should, what with his habit of doing rather badly in this particular arena. So instead, he's quiet, until Caesar starts attempting to start a tug of war with his sleeve. "Hopefully we won't have a menagerie by the end of this," he mutters, attempting to dislodge the puppy.
She never would have seen this happening a couple weeks ago, and can't believe it's happening now. But Nathan's dedication to fixing things and making them right, and her own willingness for things to mend makes this all possible.
"It's just two huge dogs and a cat?" she says helpfully, looking up at him, eyes still a little damp. "It's not like we have a small house, either, so I'm sure… Well, I'm sure they'll get underfoot as much as they possibly can, but that's not the point." Sitting up again, leaning forward, Heidi gently removes Nathan's sleeve from Caesar's mouth, which instantly grabs onto her wrist and drools all over it. Lovely! "The kids can teach them tricks, they can fetch the newspaper." Finally managing to remove her arm from the pup's mouth, she wipes it on Nathan's shirt. "…If you don't mind soggy newspapers."
Gee thank you, wife. "I'll live with 'em," Nathan says, which translates to, 'I will buy my own, dog drool free'. He looks her way again, the puppies still not calmed down enough to leave her alone, and smiles. And leans over to kiss her forehead. Because Heidi playing with puppies is oddly becoming. If he pictured this outcome, there would have been no hesitation. As it stands… well everything is uncertain, in this house. At the very least, he would have been able to give his kids their first dog (dogs, now) while he had the chance.
"And we can train them to do other tricks like staying off the sofas," he puts in. You know, fun stuff like that. He glances at his wristwatch, then reaches a hand out to pick up a puppy. "I got places to be after lunch. Want to sic these guys on the kids?"
Nathan better live with 'em. He /bought/ them and /named/ them, so they're technically his! Heidi imagines he'll hire a pooper scooper to clean up the yard, though. Big dogs, big poop and all that, and she can't imagine Nathan trekking around the back yard with a shovel and pail. Yeah, and Heidi can't really picture herself doing that, either, and the boys are a little too young. Maybe that's something they'll bring up later.
"Aw, you guys are always welcome on the sofas, aren't you?" She gives them both another good, sound petting and a kiss on the nose, then stands up and pulls on a robe. "I think we should. I can't wait to see the looks on their faces."
This is why we have money, and gardeners that will be working overtime! Yes. Nathan has thought over at least some of the technicalities when it comes to dogs. Just not all of them. He climbs off the bed, entrusting the holding of one puppy to Heidi as he picks up Julius, backing up when Caesar attempts to get in on the holding and instead finds himself nudged back towards Heidi. "Well if it's anything like yours, it should be worth it, yeah."
Those poor gardeners are going to curse the Petrelli household after the puppies start eating new food and make a mess all over the backyard. Oh, yes, the yelling will be epic! That's an argument for another time, however. Heidi picks up Caesar, holding him close, brifly burying her face in his fur, as she starts out of the guest room. The eyeroll she sends in Nathan's direction is good-natured at least… And she's thinking maybe she can sleep in her own bedroom tonight… Just maybe.
…
"ALSO" said Heidi "I SAW ELENA IN A PINK CHICKEN SUIT"