itsladykit:

Menagerie

For @sincognito who dumped some beautiful Puppymoney headcanons on me, and I ran with them.

Tags—brief mention of minor animal injury

Pairing: Puppymoney

–

Slim froze when he entered the apartment, pressing his back against the door. Cash’s brow-bone raised. “evening, love,” he said, wondering what had Slim so off-balance.

He opened his mouth, but nothing came out. Instead, he raised a hand and forced a smile, sidling along the wall. Cash watched him go, brow-bone rising higher when he heard a soft sound. “…did you just quack?”

Slim opened his mouth, blushing. Apparently still unable to find the words, he shut his mouth and shrugged. With a sigh, Cash set the kittens currently sleeping in his lap down. They stirred briefly, then tumbled together into sleep once more. It was a welcome relief—they’d been play-fighting all afternoon. Walking over to Slim, Cash looked down at him, resting an arm above Slim’s head. Slim winced, but the murmuring quacks became more audible up close. “love,” Cash asked, “are you trying to smuggle a duck into our apartment?”

“…maybe?”

The duck quacked more loudly. With a sigh, Cash lifted Slim’s hoodie, eyeing the duckling resting in the cradle of Slim’s pelvis. Blankets and torn slips of paper were crafted into a crude nest in his pelvic cradle, and the duckling was nestled snugly inside, feathers fluffed. “maybe?”

Slim squirmed. “there was a fishing hook in her foot. took her to the vet to get it out, but she needs to be watched.” He reached into his abdominal cavity and lifted the duck delicately. “doc said she seemed too tame to be wild. probably abandoned after she stopped being so little and cute.” Indeed, her mottled look—a mix of baby and adult feathers—was not exactly cute. Cash sighed, and Slim rushed to say, “i’ll find a shelter for her. but…you know. might take a couple days.”

“slim. love. we have a dog. two dogs, in fact. and four kittens. and a box turtle. our apartment may be very spacious and accommodating, but it isn’t that accommodating.”

“just a few days?”

Shutting his sockets, Cash sighed before looking at the duckling. “where’s it going to stay?”

Sensing weakness, Slim smiled broadly. “she can stay in the bathroom. we can fill the tub with water and leave a nesting box in there and—“

“for just a few days?”

Slim’s smile shrank, but he nodded. “yeah. just a few days.”

“alright then,” Cash said, pulling away to put his hands in his pockets. “what’s she eat?”

He reached out to scratch the duckling’s neck, already resigning himself to yet another new family member. The apartment really was getting too small, though.

–

Cash opened the passenger-side door, and Slim got out, looking around. “what do you think?” Cash asked, guiding him up the walkway. Slim looked around, taking in the front yard—full of drought-tolerant plants and cacti. Intricate stonework kept it classy, though. Cash opened the front door and lead him inside. Cool tile floors, designed to resist stains and scratches. Cash wanted functional, but he wasn’t going to sacrifice style.

Slim eyed the place. “it’s really nice.”

“you like it?”

“yeah, sure. is it a new rental property?”

Cash opened the back door for him, and Slim froze when he saw the newly made coop, pond, and what had the potential to serve as a stable. “only if you’re not happy with it.”

“this is—?”

Cash nodded. “if we’re going to have a menagerie, then we need a place to house it—oof!”

Slim hugged him hard enough to pop his spine, and warmth spread outward from his soul. Cash set a hand on his skull and kissed the top of his head before returning the hug.

Really, he’d do anything to make Slim happy.

Aww, these two. ❤

I love this. Your Puppymoney is so sweet and delightful. Cash, you’re such a sucker.