Fic: Habit Forming, Numb3rs, Cass/Don, G
May. 22nd, 2006 06:39 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
umbralilliumTitle: Habit Forming
Author: DaniKitten (![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
dollydani)
Pairing: Don/Cassandra
Rating: G
Disclaimer: Anything you recognize is not mine. Cassandra, however, is mine (and Don's).
Warnings/Squicks: None, unless you count excessive fluff as a squick. *g*
Summary: Everyone has habits, here are some of Cassandra’s.
Previous Stories: Takes place after The Last Thing They Expected and Sweep Me Off My Feet, but before Someone Reaching Back For Me.
Notes: This has been sitting on my computer for I-don’t-know-how-long. I finally finished writing another Don/Cass but this one needs to be posted before that one because there’s more information on Belle and Beau in this one and it’s kinda necessary for the next Don/Cass story, and for What Dreams Reveal
Beta:jestana, without her, my fics would not look nearly as good as they do now. : )
Habit Forming
Most everyone knows that humans are creatures of habit. Parents wake up in the morning, have a cup of coffee, make sure the kids get up in time to eat breakfast and get ready for school, they get the kids off to school then go to work. Single adults have a slightly different routine. Generally it starts out the same: they turn off the alarm, lay quietly deciding if they want to try if they want to get another five or ten minutes of sleep, finally drag themselves out of bed half an hour later, have a cup of strong black coffee to get their brain working at a coherent rate, they eat breakfast, take a shower, and then head off to work.
Of course, it varies depending on whether one is a morning person or a night owl. Cassandra Granger was most decidedly not a morning person. Colby once jokingly told her she should invent a mattress platform that would tilt straight up and dump her out of bed in the mornings, to which Cassandra replied by sticking out her tongue. Of course, they were seven years old at the time, but Colby still reminded her about it from time to time. Meaning pretty much any time he called her before noon.
As was her particular habit, Cassandra finally dragged herself out of bed around noon, stumbled down the hall to the kitchen, absently noted that the cat food dish needed to be refilled, reached into the cabinet above the coffeemaker for a large red mug, poured some of the freshly brewed French Roast coffee into the mug until it was a little over half full, she turned to her right and added cool water to the coffee, and then finally took the first sip. Her eyes fell closed as the caffeine worked its way into her system, waking her up gradually. Slowly, she became aware of the feeling of being watched. One eye drifted open and she glanced around, nope, no one in the kitchen. Her other eye opened and she looked down into large golden eyes set in a dark, furred face. "Good morning, Belle," she murmured.
Cassandra smiled as Belle's mouth opened but no sound came out that she could hear. Which wasn't saying a whole lot, but still, Belle tried. Cassandra set her mug down on the counter then grabbed the bag of cat food from the counter above the cat food dish and poured some food out into each side of the dish. Cassandra reached down and scratched Belle's ears as she started eating. Out of the corner of her eye, she registered a blur of white and black right before her other cat, Beau, joined Belle. She petted along the length of his back before straightening and replacing the bag of food. She picked up her mug and watched as the two cats ate together companionably.
Belle was the older of the two by only two years. She was a plump charcoal tabby with six toes on each paw. She was very protective of her Cassandra, particularly when strange men came to the house. She would sit somewhere up high in whatever room the strange man was in and just sit and stare at him, unnerving some men to such a degree that quite a few had left for that reason alone, much to Cassandra's combined dismay and amusement. Belle had been there for Cassandra through some of her most trying times. Belle was over 15 years old and still going strong, but Cassandra dreaded the day her feline friend left her for good. Beau was as loyal as any cat could be, but he wasn't Belle. Beau was a fairly large cat, being part Maine Coon; fully stretched his front paws came up to the middle of Cassandra's thigh. He was mostly white in color with charcoal tabby markings along his head, back, and tail, and had copper-colored eyes.
Cassandra finished her coffee and, after rinsing the mug and setting it on the counter next to the sink, she headed back to her bedroom to shower and dress. Another habit of Cassandra’s was to spend quite a bit of time luxuriating in a nice, hot shower, so it was another half an hour before Cassandra exited the bedroom, her short, dark blonde hair still wet, wearing a pair of well-worn jeans, a white tank top, and a pair of brown boots. She walked into her studio, grabbed a light, purple hooded sweater, and slipped it on before heading for the front door, closing the door to her studio behind her. She paused briefly to pet Beau and Belle, who were both sitting on the back of her living room couch, grabbed her purse from the table next to the front door, and then opened the front door.
She froze, startled, when she registered that someone was standing on her front doorstep with their hand poised to knock. “Don, hi!”
Don lowered his arm and smiled somewhat sheepishly. “Hey, Cass. Sorry, I didn’t call first,”
Cassandra relaxed, a smile of her own appearing on her lips. “That’s alright. I was just on my way out to get some breakfast, would you like to join me?”
Don stared at her for a moment then made a show of looking at his watch, still smiling. “As long as you don’t mind if I get lunch and not breakfast,”
Cassandra waved a hand dismissively. “Semantics. We’re still eating, right?”
Don chuckled. “Yeah,”
“Good!” Cassandra declared, stepping out onto the porch, pulling the door shut behind her. She paused long enough to lock it before turning to Don. “Shall we, then?”
“After you.” Don said, making a show of gesturing Cassandra ahead of him.
“Thank you, kind sir,” Cassandra teased, mock-curtseying.
“You’re welcome, milady,” Don returned, dark brown eyes dancing with suppressed laughter.
Cassandra’s laugh floated along the late spring breeze as she took Don’s hand and led him back down her front walk to the sidewalk. She paused for a moment and turned to look at him, biting her lip uncertainly. “I usually walk to this little bakery a couple blocks over, is that okay?”
Don smiled and tucked a stray strand of hair behind Cassandra’s ear. “That sounds great,”
Cassandra smiled and started walking again, completely oblivious to the fact that she hadn’t let go of Don’s hand.
End.
End note: Belle and Beau are based on actual cats; Belle is based on my cat, Bright Eyes, and Beau is based on Jestana's first cat, Alonzo. Sadly, Alonzo is no longer with us, so Beau is my tribue to him. We miss you, big guy.
Author: DaniKitten (
dollydani)Pairing: Don/Cassandra
Rating: G
Disclaimer: Anything you recognize is not mine. Cassandra, however, is mine (and Don's).
Warnings/Squicks: None, unless you count excessive fluff as a squick. *g*
Summary: Everyone has habits, here are some of Cassandra’s.
Previous Stories: Takes place after The Last Thing They Expected and Sweep Me Off My Feet, but before Someone Reaching Back For Me.
Notes: This has been sitting on my computer for I-don’t-know-how-long. I finally finished writing another Don/Cass but this one needs to be posted before that one because there’s more information on Belle and Beau in this one and it’s kinda necessary for the next Don/Cass story, and for What Dreams Reveal
Beta:
jestana, without her, my fics would not look nearly as good as they do now. : )Most everyone knows that humans are creatures of habit. Parents wake up in the morning, have a cup of coffee, make sure the kids get up in time to eat breakfast and get ready for school, they get the kids off to school then go to work. Single adults have a slightly different routine. Generally it starts out the same: they turn off the alarm, lay quietly deciding if they want to try if they want to get another five or ten minutes of sleep, finally drag themselves out of bed half an hour later, have a cup of strong black coffee to get their brain working at a coherent rate, they eat breakfast, take a shower, and then head off to work.
Of course, it varies depending on whether one is a morning person or a night owl. Cassandra Granger was most decidedly not a morning person. Colby once jokingly told her she should invent a mattress platform that would tilt straight up and dump her out of bed in the mornings, to which Cassandra replied by sticking out her tongue. Of course, they were seven years old at the time, but Colby still reminded her about it from time to time. Meaning pretty much any time he called her before noon.
As was her particular habit, Cassandra finally dragged herself out of bed around noon, stumbled down the hall to the kitchen, absently noted that the cat food dish needed to be refilled, reached into the cabinet above the coffeemaker for a large red mug, poured some of the freshly brewed French Roast coffee into the mug until it was a little over half full, she turned to her right and added cool water to the coffee, and then finally took the first sip. Her eyes fell closed as the caffeine worked its way into her system, waking her up gradually. Slowly, she became aware of the feeling of being watched. One eye drifted open and she glanced around, nope, no one in the kitchen. Her other eye opened and she looked down into large golden eyes set in a dark, furred face. "Good morning, Belle," she murmured.
Cassandra smiled as Belle's mouth opened but no sound came out that she could hear. Which wasn't saying a whole lot, but still, Belle tried. Cassandra set her mug down on the counter then grabbed the bag of cat food from the counter above the cat food dish and poured some food out into each side of the dish. Cassandra reached down and scratched Belle's ears as she started eating. Out of the corner of her eye, she registered a blur of white and black right before her other cat, Beau, joined Belle. She petted along the length of his back before straightening and replacing the bag of food. She picked up her mug and watched as the two cats ate together companionably.
Belle was the older of the two by only two years. She was a plump charcoal tabby with six toes on each paw. She was very protective of her Cassandra, particularly when strange men came to the house. She would sit somewhere up high in whatever room the strange man was in and just sit and stare at him, unnerving some men to such a degree that quite a few had left for that reason alone, much to Cassandra's combined dismay and amusement. Belle had been there for Cassandra through some of her most trying times. Belle was over 15 years old and still going strong, but Cassandra dreaded the day her feline friend left her for good. Beau was as loyal as any cat could be, but he wasn't Belle. Beau was a fairly large cat, being part Maine Coon; fully stretched his front paws came up to the middle of Cassandra's thigh. He was mostly white in color with charcoal tabby markings along his head, back, and tail, and had copper-colored eyes.
Cassandra finished her coffee and, after rinsing the mug and setting it on the counter next to the sink, she headed back to her bedroom to shower and dress. Another habit of Cassandra’s was to spend quite a bit of time luxuriating in a nice, hot shower, so it was another half an hour before Cassandra exited the bedroom, her short, dark blonde hair still wet, wearing a pair of well-worn jeans, a white tank top, and a pair of brown boots. She walked into her studio, grabbed a light, purple hooded sweater, and slipped it on before heading for the front door, closing the door to her studio behind her. She paused briefly to pet Beau and Belle, who were both sitting on the back of her living room couch, grabbed her purse from the table next to the front door, and then opened the front door.
She froze, startled, when she registered that someone was standing on her front doorstep with their hand poised to knock. “Don, hi!”
Don lowered his arm and smiled somewhat sheepishly. “Hey, Cass. Sorry, I didn’t call first,”
Cassandra relaxed, a smile of her own appearing on her lips. “That’s alright. I was just on my way out to get some breakfast, would you like to join me?”
Don stared at her for a moment then made a show of looking at his watch, still smiling. “As long as you don’t mind if I get lunch and not breakfast,”
Cassandra waved a hand dismissively. “Semantics. We’re still eating, right?”
Don chuckled. “Yeah,”
“Good!” Cassandra declared, stepping out onto the porch, pulling the door shut behind her. She paused long enough to lock it before turning to Don. “Shall we, then?”
“After you.” Don said, making a show of gesturing Cassandra ahead of him.
“Thank you, kind sir,” Cassandra teased, mock-curtseying.
“You’re welcome, milady,” Don returned, dark brown eyes dancing with suppressed laughter.
Cassandra’s laugh floated along the late spring breeze as she took Don’s hand and led him back down her front walk to the sidewalk. She paused for a moment and turned to look at him, biting her lip uncertainly. “I usually walk to this little bakery a couple blocks over, is that okay?”
Don smiled and tucked a stray strand of hair behind Cassandra’s ear. “That sounds great,”
Cassandra smiled and started walking again, completely oblivious to the fact that she hadn’t let go of Don’s hand.
End note: Belle and Beau are based on actual cats; Belle is based on my cat, Bright Eyes, and Beau is based on Jestana's first cat, Alonzo. Sadly, Alonzo is no longer with us, so Beau is my tribue to him. We miss you, big guy.
