happiness is a warm puppy [open to all]

[doublethepain]

He's definitely come down with something.

It's hardly cause for panic, really, just a bit of congestion; some coughing that he thinks he's done a fair job of keeping under wraps; maybe a slightly sore throat, a few pressure headaches here and there, a case of the chills; but he's fine, Spencer is sure of it. He's fine because he's got a ring on his finger and a puppy at the end of his leash, so there's nothing at all in his life that he can complain about right now.

John had most generously given him half a day off--"a wedding gift from me to you" is how his boss had put it--so Spencer had stopped back at home to get Huxley before heading in some direction or another, he hadn't really had a plan. It's not very surprising that his feet seem to take him in the direction of Crossroads, as they so often do, but a part of him hopes that he'll run into some people he knows on the way there. He has news, after all, and he's not one to call up all his friends--not that it would take long, he muses--to share even the most exciting parts of his life, but he does want people to know.

He's happy, happier than he's ever been and not just since his mother and Dane had died. He has so much to be thankful for, so much to come to look forward to, and he can't remember the last time he'd felt so optimistic about his future. He smiles to himself as he watches Huxley sniff at the grass on the sidewalk before the puppy scrambles to meet a pair of feet that's headed their way, jumping up on his hind legs to paw at the stranger. Spencer's smile doesn't fade as he lifts his head to look at the other person; in fact, it only grows wider.

"You're in for it now," he says, a teasing edge to his tone. "Huxley seems to grow attached to people far too quickly for his own good."




[OOC: Spencer's a little under the weather right now because I am, too but he's in an excellent mood so it would be a great time to say hello, whether your character has already met him or not :) Find him walking his and Joel's new puppy Huxley or catch him wherever is convenient for your character to be. As long as that place allows dogs.]

Comments

[louise_abasi]

"Aren't you the most adorable little thing?"

Lou - still a bit wobbly, with all that time of lying around - squats down to the dog. "Hello, stranger. I'm certain you're new, because else I would have remembered you."

She knows who Spencer is, she's pretty sure she can remember a connection to Joel and how she had hurt him, but she's still a bit vague on how they left things off before she disappeared and left part of her memories there. Still, she doesn't expect Spencer to be rude or awful to her, no matter what she did or didn't do.

That's what she hopes, at least.

[asharpertongue]

"Hi boy!" Lara said, scrubbing the dog behind his ears. Osha, who'd been strolling peacefully behind Lara caught sight of the small puppy and walked forward to sniff at him. The puppy yipped and ran back to Spencer. Osha looked up at Lara and whined. "Well you're enormous and he's tiny. What do you expect?" Lara said, smiling at Spencer and winking. "Hi Spencer." She hasn't missed the ring on his finger but she won't ask. Spencer always preferred to share, rather than be confronted. "New addition to the household?"

[fairywren]

Wren is not the most responsible person when it comes to taking care of himself, but Inari - well, she deserves attention (and she knows it). So he gets up a little earlier to make sure she gets out, has food. In this quiet place he dares to let go of the leash once in a while if she's calm and right now she's strolling patiently by him, pausing every once in a while to sniff at something.

He'd never thought of himself as a dog person. Even when he adopted her, it was really just that she was special. Now, with a tiny and objectively adorable puppy jumping up on his boots to greet him, he has to maybe reconsider.

"Hello there," he says very seriously to the pup and looks up to smile at the lanky stranger who seems to be its person, eventually giving in and crouching to give it a scritch behind the ears. "Huxley. Like the writer?" Inari, behind him, runs up to wag her tail cautiously and sniff at the puppy.

[just_another]

Joel is sitting just outside Crossroads with his laptop beside him on the bench as he chews at the end of a pen he has strictly for that purpose. Without the past week away and the wedding itself, this entire thing might have been too difficult for him, overwhelming in ways he wouldn't know how to deal with, but he's relatively relaxed now, balancing his books as he takes into account he'll no longer be paying rent on the store.

He can afford to start to do other things now. Renovate the basement for better storage. Maybe turn the locked room into something else as he moves his more dangerous books and magical items to his new home. He has high hopes for the store and it's Spencer who has made that possible.

The sound of the puppy's collar is what draws him out of focused state and he looks up, pushing his glasses up onto his head as he smiles at Spencer drawing closer with Huxley. "How are you feeling?" he asks. He knows Spencer has been trying not to let on that he hasn't been feeling well, but Joel sees him every single day and it's been obvious to him that he's feeling a little under the weather.

[keirasullivan]

"Oh my god Spencer, how dare you." Keira muttered at the world's tiniest little puppy dog she has ever seen. Keira might be a cat person, a girl needs a familiar, but that puppy was freaking adorable. Keira bent down to pick world's tiniest up before tickling his ears. "You are freaking adorable, you are the worst Spencer look at this puppy how could you?"

[ofcatsandfate]

"What a beaut of a dog," Fabrice grins as he bends down to pet the excited creature at his feet. He seems filled with a boundless sort of energy; it's hard not to feel a burst of happiness at the sight of such a happy puppy. "How old is he?"

He glances up to find himself faced with Spencer; he realizes he hasn't seen the other man in quite some time. "And how have you been? Doing well, I take it?" He gestures to the puppy with another smile.

[doublethepain]

Spencer shrugs mildly at the question, hoping that the way Huxley paws at Joel's leg is going to serve as enough of a distraction from the way his complexion is just the slightest bit paler than usual and the circles under his eyes just the tiniest bit darker. "Could be worse," he says vaguely, leaning down to unclip Huxley's leash from his collar and letting out a laugh when the puppy jumps into Joel's lap.

He hovers closely without making any actual moves to try to join his husband on the bench, wanting to give Joel a kiss but also wary about getting him sick because it wouldn't do to have them both out of commission and unable to work. He notes the laptop and then Joel's chew pen--and the fact that Joel actually has a pen specific for chewing the end of had come as such a delightful and endearing surprise--before offering a small smile.

"Somebody's been putting his mind to work," he says, tilting his head to give the other man a quizzical look. "Giving thought to what you want to do with the store?"

[doublethepain]

Spencer can't help the delighted laugh that escapes him, and he has to admit that he'd shared that reaction when he'd first seen Huxley. He'd only meant to pass through Wilton's Human Society, which had been very inconveniently located just a block away from the cofee shop that had been his original destination, but Spencer had known he could leave without the pup the second he'd let eyes on him. The fact that he'd married a man who'd felt the same way had made the adoption all the sweeter.

"He's a bit of a heartbreaker, isn't he?" he asks with a broad smile, shaking his head at the way Huxley relentlessly tries to squirm out of Keira's hold, though his tail wags with excitement. "The library is a perfectly acceptable place to act as a doggy day care, don't you think?"

[just_another]

Joel makes a face at Spencer's response, using one hand to corral Huxley against his chest so he doesn't go walking all over the laptop. With the other hand he reaches up, hooking his fingers in one of Spencer's belt loops and tugging gently, trying to get him to sit down on the bench as well. Could be worse is as vague an answer as he can give, but Joel will let him have it, so long as Spencer lets Joel take care of him when they head home. Which he'll actually have little choice in, given the fact that Joel already has all the ingredients for homemade chicken noodle soup as well as several movies he'd rented earlier, in hopes he'd be able to convince Spencer to take the night off from helping Raleigh at the bakery.

"Come here," he says, lifting his hand from Spencer's belt to the back of his neck, tugging him in for a kiss. If he gets sick as a result, he'll get sick, he doesn't care, but the idea of greeting Spencer without kissing him is unacceptable. It's not the sort of thing he ever went without before, but he's fairly certain that being married means he's always required to greet Spencer with a kiss, which is exactly the sort of rule he's more than happy to follow.

"Thinking about what we might do with the store," he corrects, glancing down at the spreadsheet he has open on the laptop before looking back over at Spencer. "I don't... I'm trying not to get ahead of myself, but you really... you've opened up a lot of doors for things to get done with it." He's thanked Spencer already and he'll probably thank him a hundred times more, but he thinks it's important Spencer know exactly what he's given Joel. The extra money doesn't seem like it would be a lot, but it makes a big difference.

[doublethepain]

The whimper of protest he lets out is weak, hardly even audible, but he can hardly be blamed when Joel's lips brush against his, and he nuzzles his cheek against Joel's beard before he pulls away--not without a beleagured groan. He knows Joel doesn't want him to feel like he has to keep his distance, it's exactly how he'd feel if their positions were reversed; and he hates the thought of getting his husband sick, but Spencer supposes that if Joel wants a kiss, it's only fair that he gets one.

If the kiss hadn't sufficiently brightened Spencer's already good mood, Joel's use of the word we when talking about the store most certainly does. It makes his cheeks flush as he tries to restrain himself from looking too pleased, and he glances at the store window with pride in his eyes before resting a hand on Joel's thigh. The store is still Joel's, regardless of whether both their names are on the property title or not, because Joel had put so much of his life into this place. Spencer doesn't feel like he's done much--some organization and tidying here and there--but to be perfectly honest, he's very much looking forward to putting in his two weeks at the library so he can dedicate all of his working hours to helping Joel with the store. It's exciting, all the changes that seem to be hurtling toward them now that they're married, and he's a little surprised by how willing he is to welcome that change with open arms.

"I've got a list of things to run by you," he admits, starting to tick off on his fingers. "Yelp and FourSquare and all those search engines that will lead people here; advertisements, any advertisements--the radio, the paper, flyers in cafes, whatever; Caden Carter promised you a book signing, right? I think that'll attract a lot of attention and generate word-of-mouth."

He's talking like he has any experience at all in helping to run a business, but Spencer just wants to make the store a bigger success because it means so much to his husband and thus, it means a great deal to him, too. He loves being here, loves the smell of the books in the closer quarters and how it's a bit dark inside but that just adds to the store's quirkiness, it's something Spencer doesn't think should change. Joel could even expand the store if he wanted to, could even be a little less weary about where he keeps texts about magic, depending on what kind. It'd be novelty to tourists and useful to locals, there's really no losing there.

He realizes that he's bouncing his knee while these thoughts are racing through his head, and he crosses his legs to force himself to stop as he gives Joel a sheepish smile, reaching out to scratch behind Huxley's ears. "I've maybe been thinking a lot about it. You deserve all the success in the world, I just want to help you get it if I can."

[doublethepain]

Spencer's smile brightens when the stranger cites the author and he nods eagerly, perhaps looking a bit too earnest and excitable which really isn't like him at all--at least, not usually, though he still feels quite like he's just been floating above ground since he and Joel had returned from their elopement--but Spencer is always happy when someone recognizes anything related to literature.

"Like the writer, indeed," he says, rolling his eyes when Huxley licks at the stranger's hand before rolling on his back to encourage a belly rub. He doesn't stay in that position long, though, not when the other man's dog comes bounding up to investigate, and Spencer lets out a laugh as the pair begin to circle each other.

"Your dog is lovely. My brother always wanted one when we were growing up, but our mother never did allow it." He surprises himself by saying it, mostly because he barely talks about his mother and brother with the people he cares for most as it is; discussing Dane with someone he's never met, it's-- Well, to be honest, it turns out that it's much easier.

It's likely due to the fact that this man has no idea what Spencer's history in Siren Cove is like, that he'd been accused of killing his own family on the morning of his own birthday, but he doesn't feel the tension in his shoulders like he usually does when talking to someone who isn't Joel about his brother. He's not at ease, exactly, he's never at ease when it comes to being social with much of anyone, but it's a vast improvement from the way he'd once approached meeting new acquaitances--that is to say, he wouldn't have approached anyone at all.

"I'm Spencer, by the way, Spencer Waters." He pauses, shaking his head as his smile broadens further. "Waters-Baker. What do you call yours?"

[doublethepain]

He blinks at the sight of Lou before him, and he'd seen that invitation to Sunday brunch when he and Joel had returned but he hasn't seen her in what feels like half a lifetime now, simply because so much has changed, and he feels a bit foolish as he realizes that he's staring at her with his mouth slightly agape.

She looks no worse for the wear, aside from what seems to be a bit of shakiness as she kneels to coo over Huxley, but Spencer doesn't know if it's rude or not to ask where she's been or what she's been doing all this time. He's a bit confused, too, by what she says to him and his forehead wrinkles along with his brow as he tries to determine whether she's simply making a joke or not.

"I'm sorry I missed your brunch," he eventually manages to spit out, cheeks reddening because he's sure that Lou hadn't cared at all that he hadn't attended, but he clears his sore throat and tries to rub its rawness away with a hand on his neck. "Are you-- You look-- You're all right, aren't you? You just... disappeared."

In spite of what had happened between her and Joel--the thought of which still makes him very uncomfortable because of what had been implied--he cares about Lou's well-being, cares whether or not she's doing all right, and he tries to give her a small, reassuring smile.

[doublethepain]

Spencer snorts when Huxley retreats, gathering his dog up in his arms not because he's worried that Osha might hurt him but because he suspects that any more time spent on the ground right now would result in Huxley being far more of a terror to Osha than Spencer thinks he can handle right now. He makes a face when Huxley licks at his nose before pressing a soft kiss to the pup's head and grinning up at Lara.

"Hello, Lara," he answers, nodding at her question though he's sure it's clear enough on its own. "Joel and I, we've been out of town for the past week. We made a few... changes."

[keirasullivan]

"Yes heartbreaking, like you and Joel. Shacking up, breaking my heart the pair of you. Whatever am I going to do once I turn thirty now? You know I was going to marry slash have one of your babies. Now, I need to rethink the plan." Keira replied dryly, rubbing the cute tiny little thing's tummy as he wiggled about in her palm. It was like the size of a teacup or something. Putting the puppy down, she patted his head fondly. "If you mean the library then you mean the basement and by the basement I mean my office then yes. Perfectly acceptable."

[doublethepain]

"The Human Society in Wilton guessed about five months," he answers, and it's with a pang in his chest that he thinks of how devastated he would be to have to give Huxley up. The puppy has only been with him and Joel for a few days but the connection had been undeniable from the get-go, it's the very reason he'd insisted they couldn't leave without the dog, and he's so glad that his husband is the kind of man who'd agreed.

The smile easily returns, though, when Fabrice asks if he's doing well. There are so many ways he could answer that, the most instinctual of them to throw his his hand under the other man's nose to show Fabrice the ring on his finger. This is, quite obviously, a route he opts not to take and instead just nods. "Very well, yes, thank you. It's been a bit of a busy week. How about yourself?"

[louise_abasi]

"I .. - I meant the dog."

Louise feels herself grow uncomfortable under his stare and wonders if she missed a big thing while growing back a memory.

"That's fine, really. It was very awkward at first and pretty emotional later. I wouldn't wish it on anyone."

She lets the little dog play with her hand so she won't have to meet his eyes. "Some magic went wrong. Some people wanted something from me. I'm getting better quickly. But how have you been?"

[ofcatsandfate]

"Wilton, huh? Well, he certainly looks happy to be here," Fabrice muses, scratching the dog behind the ears. He's considered getting himself a dog, at some point, but, again, with his three cats, he'd have to be careful. At least, he has plenty of love and affection for other peoples' dogs, at the moment.

"A good kind of busy?" He asks, taking in the man's grin along with the dog. He certainly seems to be glowing. He thinks about his own week, the tumultuous nature of it and all the time he got to spend with Demetri. "I'm doing well. Definitely glad it's September, now."

[just_another]

"He did, yes," Joel confirms with a nod, keeping close to Spencer, Huxley still held against his chest. The puppy is going to get bored and squirm away eventually, but for now it seems that the walk has tired him out and he rests against Joel's chest without protest, his eyes closed. Glancing down, he gives the puppy's ears a rub before he looks back to Spencer. He's looking forward to the signing, hopeful that it might generate more interest in the store from people who might not have otherwise come in, and he's excited that Caden chose to do it in his store instead of one of the chains. Joel knows he's not real competition for those stores, but he'd like to be able to keep himself employed. "I told him I could only pay him in coffee and cookies, but he seemed more than happy to accept that."

His smile widens when Spencer says he wants to help Joel succeed and he knows it, he's known it all along, but it still feels awfully nice to hear him say it. There's still a part of him that wants to resist the help, but he's doing a fairly good job at pushing that down, because there's no good reason for it except his pride and the fact that he's been on his own for so long. He's not on his own anymore, he's married to this wonderful man, and the very thought sends a happy little tingle up his spine.

"I was thinking... the things in the locked room, maybe I'll move them to the house," he says. "The things that are actually dangerous we'd have to find a safe place for, but most of it can be stored... well, everyone knows now, don't they? There's no reason for me to hide all that stuff when everyone knows."

So far he hasn't had anything to worry about. No one has been cruel to him, no one has said a word, although he'd been out of town when the summon had come in for the most recent meeting. Even with the fact that he'd revealed himself to a crowd of people, Joel isn't sure he'd attend something like that. He's never been part of the community and even now, even with more people knowing what he is, he's not sure he'd have anything to contribute to something like that.

"I was thinking... I mean, if you're okay with it, I could move it home and we could open that space up. Use it as part of the store instead," he suggest, looking at Spencer hopefully. It's their home, but when it comes to something like this, he still wants to default to Spencer. He needs to know it's okay before he does anything.

[aoife_coombs]

Aoife can see that Joel's working, but she's glad to see him again. She waves at him before walking over, keeping her body half-turned so she can excuse herself if he turns out to be doing something really important.

"Hey, Joel."

[doublethepain]

"Right."

It doesn't really matter, he's not all too focused on Huxley at the moment because Lou says magic had gone wrong, that people had wanted things from her, and that doesn't sound foreboding at all except for the way it absolutely does. He feels something tighten in his chest when he thinks of Joel, faced now with a concrete reason for why a fear of magic could be justified, and it makes him a little sick to think that anyone could turn on Joel simply because he'd revealed what he can do just to defend Spencer.

She doesn't look at him, so he kneels down to try to catch her eye. Whatever awkwardness he might feel can be put aside and while he doesn't reach out for her, he softens his voice. "I've been well, thank you. When you say people wanted something from you, what-- I know you said you're getting better but those people, have they been... taken care of? Are you being taken care of?"

[doublethepain]

"You've got a couple years left before you're destined to for eternal spinsterdom," he says dryly. "I, on the other hand, was less than a year away so I had to act quickly."

He knows that there hadn't been a particularly wide gap in time between meeting Joel and marrying him, and Spencer also knows that they'll probably be met with skepticism from some; but the important thing is that they know it had been the right thing to do, for themselves. They'd said it to each other even before Joel had officially proposed that there could never be anyone else, that nobody else could ever make them feel this way, and Spencer hadn't been able to think of a single good reason to delay the inevitable. They're going to be together for the rest of their lives and now... now, they've just made it legally recognized.

He smiles as Keira puts the puppy down and Huxley yips in protest, standing on his hind legs so he can paw at her. "If you're volunteering for dogsitting services, consider yourself hired."

[louise_abasi]

She smiles at him. "I'll offer you the cliff notes version: someone was poisoning my mind and glamouring me to not remember this life and loved ones to keep me from leaving there. Lara and a - I think he's new to town - a witch called Rhodri helped me out in the magical department. Grant brought me back home. Now I have to -"

Her ringtone interrupted her. "Check in every fifteen minutes with four different people to make sure that I'm okay, still know who I am and not taken by anyone."

"I think that amounts to 'being taken care of', don't you agree? And the bad guys ..I don't know. I don't want to know anymore. I think both the police and the sirens are looking into it. I just don't want to be scared anymore."

[doublethepain]

"Yes, lovely town, have you been there? I'm sure I've seen it on a map but I'd never heard anything about it before, we just wanted to get out of town and go somewhere... different. My-- My husband and I, that is. I'm not sure if you've met Joel."

He feels the flush on his cheeks and huffs out an embarrassed laugh, only because calling Joel his husband, is still so new. He suspects the delight he gets just from saying the word won't fade anytime soon; it makes his eyes threaten to well up just thinking about the vows they'd exchanged and how perfect that entire evening had been. He couldn't have asked for a better way to marry the man he loves.

"I supposes that answers your question about being busy," he continues, glancing down at his ring. "I certainly didn't have a husband before I left. And I'm glad to hear you're well, I suppose that means nothing especially awful happened in town while I as gone. Color me shocked."

He nods his agreement when Fabrice says he's glad it's a new month. "It's been quite a year." That's an understatement if ever he's made one and even though the ups of this year have made more of an impact on him than the downs seem to have, Spencer is still ready for 2014 to come to an end.

[doublethepain]

"Well, rumor has it the owner of the shop is an unfairly attractive man," he teases, nudging Joel's knee with his own. "And anyway, Mr. Carter seems like the type to have a soft spot for shops like yours. Sometimes I feel corrupt just walking into one of the chains, though I suppose he's got book sales to worry about. Fortunately, the biggest concern in my life at the moment is figuring out the best way to tell John that I'm quitting to come work for my husband."

It's really not much of a concern at all, simply more of an end of an era. He's been working at the library since he was seventeen, and John has known him for even longer because his mother had been his favorite employee--so John says--until she'd eventually decided to pass the torch to her son. They've always been loyal to each other and before he'd had Cosette or Lara as friends, John is the one who'd been there for Spencer, who'd been most like a father figure in his own way.

"I'm going to get an earful," he says with a laugh, reaching over Joel's lap to tap lightly at Huxley's nose. "But he's happy for us, you know. He tried to write me a check as a gift, but I wouldn't take it. So he ordered a pizza for lunch instead and brought in a box of cream soda."

John's given him more over the past decade than Spencer could have ever asked for, and Spencer knows it's not out of obligation to his mother's memory. They're close without being nosy about each other's lives, it's always worked for them, and Spencer wishes he knew of a way he could sufficiently thank John for everything he's done. Thinking of his boss sparks another thought, and he gives his husband a sidelong glance accompanied by an arched eyebrow.

"Have you told your family yet?" he asks, and he's been moderately amused since they've gotten back that Joel certainly hadn't. The longer Joel waits, the more severe the reaction will be, but Spencer isn't really worried about that, either. Ultimately, he's certain that Joel's family understands how much they love each other, how right this choice had been for them, just as their friends have so far. "I'm not sure who's going to be more upset that they weren't at the wedding, your mother or your sister. And yes, of course you can move your things home. It's your house, too. Or it will be, anyway, as soon as we get your name on the title."

There's still so much paperwork to do now that they're married, but Spencer likes to think of it as reinforcement of the promises they've made to each other than as a chore.

"Oh, we should put the Keurig to use on the day of the signing. A free cup of coffee for customer appreciation as long as they buy a book or something, isn't that a thing people enjoy?" He shrugs, sighing as leans back against the bench and absently rubs at his throat. "Now I'm the one getting far too ahead of myself, god."

[just_another]

"Hi," Joel answers, looking up at the sound of Aoife's voice as he pushes his glasses up on top of his head. The spreadsheets can wait and although he's a little nervous, he's excited, too. Besides Raleigh, Aoife will be the first person he'll have told about what he and Spencer have done and it's the first time in his life he's had news like this. Hopefully it won't be the last, not with their plans for the store and for a family one day, but it's the first and he shifts on the bench, unable to stop himself from smiling. "How are you?"