AU

[roartonrisen]

Quite honestly, for about three months, Kieren just sort of figured his cat's been getting really fat. It's not like he should know better, because it's not like he'd ever had an appreciation for the animal arts when he'd been alive. So when someone had given Kieren a look like he's an idiot and commented that the cat's just pregnant, he doesn't think it should be his fault he hadn't noticed.

He hadn't even noticed himself coming back to life. How is he supposed to notice a cat?

He can notice, though, that the cat seems to be in distress and a quick check on the internet says that this is around the time they go into labour. Still, he's not doing this on his own. A touch panicked, Kieren fumbles around the bungalow for his things and fetches towels and an actual dropcloth, texting Sirius absently as he wanders, running a hand through his hair until it's wild.

Does he call a vet? Does he get a house call? Do those things still happen?

Comments

[roartonrisen]

"Why not that as an actual name?" he questions, because it's a pretty name and he likes the idea of it. It's probably not coming from the same place that Kieren knows it from, but he likes it. "Her nickname would end up being Minnie, wouldn't it?" he says knowingly, able to already see them calling the name out.

[thebloodtraitor]

Sirius's eyes light up at that, lips curling into a wide grin, memories of better years at Hogwarts suddenly flooding in from all sides. The number of times he'd used that nickname himself, the number of times he'd had to pay for it, are immeasurable and worth it for every memory.

"Minerva it is, I think," he says, tipping his head up to grin at Kieren before turning his attention back to the two squirming little ones. "Whether you're a girl or a boy, I think."

[roartonrisen]

Kieren huffs and stares at the beginning of another kitten coming out. "I'm fairly sure we'll have our pick of boys and girls, so there's no need to saddle a little boy kitten with Minnie as one of its names," he chides fondly. He indulges in the way his heart skips a beat to think of their little home and their cats.

"I hope this won't send you skittering away," he says. "I'd hate to lose my favourite bed warmer."

[thebloodtraitor]

"Any boy would be lucky to be given such a name, I'd think," Sirius says, resting his chin on his hands as he continues staring, wondering already exactly which of the kittens they'll keep. They're all rather adorable, he'll admit.

When Kieren speaks again, he turns to look back once more, brow furrowed, but still smiling. "Do you mean me or Padfoot? Or Ginger."

[roartonrisen]

"I mean you, but Padfoot is a close second," he confesses. "I feel like after all that time being cold, I'm extra sensitive to it. I'm sure you've noticed my ice-box feet against you in the middle of the night," he points out, but he's smiling as if it's a charming thing and not just frigid feet.

[thebloodtraitor]

"Oh, I have noticed," Sirius assures him with a teasing grin. In the dead of sleep, it's been quite a shock and has made him quietly grumpy on more than one occasion, but the reminder that at least Kieren has working bloodflow at all now is enough to calm him. "If those frigid feet aren't enough to have me skittering away, I can't imagine a second little cat would do it. Provided he or she doesn't start clawing at me in the middle of the night, I suppose."

[roartonrisen]

"I'll have to teach her the ways of accepting the canine in our lives," Kieren says, eyes widening when he sees a third kitten beginning to make an exit. He reaches for the bowl of water and breathes out warily as he gets ready to catch this one and clean up.

[thebloodtraitor]

"Well, if we introduce her young, I imagine she'll adapt," Sirius points out, shifting abruptly when Kieren reaches for the water to make room for the newest addition.

"I should hunt down the little tomcat that did this," he says then, voice entirely teasing. "He should want to be a part of his childrens' lives at the very least, don't you think? Maybe put in a bit here and bit there for child care. Poor Ginger shouldn't be strapped with their sole care for the next however long."

[roartonrisen]

Kieren peers over his shoulder and lets out a sudden laugh as he rubs the towel over the new kitten once he's gotten him (or is it a her?) clean. "If you feel up to prowling around as Padfoot and trying to sniff out which cat put Ginger in this position, far be it for me to stop you. Just remember, you come home to us."

[thebloodtraitor]

"I sense a bit of doubt in your tone," Sirius replies, grinning as he watches Kieren very carefully wipe the squirming little newbie all clean. "And where else might I go?" he adds with a soft scoff. "Are you implying Padfoot has some wild oats to sew?"

[roartonrisen]

Kieren grins as he leans back on his elbow, a teasing grin on his lips. "Well, if that's you saying that there's no place you'd rather be than here with me, I'll take it," he promises, leaning over to kiss his lower lip from its mild sulk. "I did give you the key for a reason."

[thebloodtraitor]

"Not that I need it," Sirius points out, though he can't help but smile at the kiss Kieren leaves to his bottom lip. He leans upward before Kieren can get too far to steal another before shifting suddenly to drape himself half over Kieren's lap, arranging himself so he can still watch Ginger and her newborns. "But yes, I suppose I am saying that. Is it so shocking a notion?"

[roartonrisen]

"You know, now that I have a heartbeat again, we need to talk about you giving me some kind of warning before you startle me. Windchimes or something," he says, thinking of the one too many times that he'd been startled to shock at the sight of Sirius suddenly in his place. He digs his fingers into Sirius' hair to idly stroke it as they watch Ginger work.

[thebloodtraitor]

Sirius lets out a quick bark of a laugh at that then immediately shuts his mouth when he notices the way Ginger startles at the sudden noise. The kittens hardly seem to have noticed anythign at all, at least, still squirming sightlessly upon the towel as Sirius turns his head just enough to grin up at Kieren.

"Shall I ring a bell?" he asks. "Waggle a dog collar with tags attached?"

[roartonrisen]

"I mean, if you're planning to go and buy something..." He trails off, a teasing smirk on his face that's hard to make go away. He isn't kidding, though. He does get a jolt every time Sirius turns up out of the blue without any warning. One day, he really might feel his heart skip a beat from it.

[thebloodtraitor]

"Perhaps we can train little Ginger or Minnie here to meow quietly whenever I arrive," he says, quite liking the idea himself. There's something rather appealing about having an animal, if even only a harmless house cat, herald his appearance.

Watching Ginger again, he perks up even further he notices the another little newcomer. "Ah, we've got another," he says, though he stays as he is, his head perched on Kieren's thigh. "I'm starting to wonder if we should take bets on how many we'll get in total. We're up to four now, so what do you think -- six by the end? Seven?"

[roartonrisen]

Sirius is already referring to the kitten as theirs and it makes Kieren blush all over, ears prickling red as he thinks about this little home that they're building. "I hope it's not too many," he says, starting to get worried. "I don't want to be taking them all on."

[thebloodtraitor]

"Two cats and one dog quite enough for you?" he asks, grinning. "I'm sure we can find a home for them all. Look at them - they're adorable. It shouldn't be hard. I bet I could guilt Kell and Lila into taking one. Maybe Harry, too."

[roartonrisen]

"I'm sure we could probably persuade Noah into getting the rest into the cat cafe," he admits, scrunching up his nose. "Do you think they need credentials for that? Little cat resumes?" he wonders, huffing out a soft, disbelieving laugh at what he's talking about.

[thebloodtraitor]

"We'll get it all sorted, I'm sure," Sirius replies, marveling as Ginger curls to lick at her newest little kitten, the other three still wiggling and squirming around the place. "We'll fill it in with all their best qualities. I bet little Minnie went to a nice, respectable kitty uni even."

[roartonrisen]

Kieren grins as he curls into Sirius, feeling so warm and happy and filled with a future himself. "I never thought I'd get this," he says softly, staring at the bungalow around them and Sirius in his arms. "I never thought this was even an option for me."

[thebloodtraitor]

"What, a pregnant cat?" Sirius remarks, grinning easily at Kieren as Kieren curls in close, Ginger and her kittens only feet away. His tone purely teasing, laden with an understanding even as he jokes. "You have to have had some idea letting her wander all hours of the night. She's a hussy, you know. I did warn you."

[roartonrisen]

Kieren laughs and wraps his arms tighter around Sirius to bury his face into his neck. "I let you wander at all hours of the night," he points out, "and that seems to be going just fine for me, seeing as you always know to come home."

[thebloodtraitor]

"Yes, well I don't just lift my tail for anyone, now do I?" he remarks, grinning wider now as he rolls slightly, pulling Kieren half atop him. "And I come home because I know what's good for me. Why wander about when I've got a nice roof over my head, steady food on the table, and one beautiful-if-slightly slutty cat.

"And a gorgeous boyfriend, of course," he adds with a wink. "But doesn't that go without saying?"

[roartonrisen]

"Really? Where is he? Maybe we can meet," he jokes, which is one of the oldest in the books, he knows, but it still makes him smile fondly to say it. "I'm really happy too," he promises right back, leaning forward as another kitten seems to be coming out (and he has to hope that this is the very last).