Work Text:
“I’ve always wondered why he’s named Poe.” John said absently as he petted the cat in his lap.
Rodney paused in his typing to stare at John. “We’ve been together four years and you’re just now asking me that?”
John shrugged, “Well, it’s not like it’s a big deal. It’s just never occurred to me until now that it’s kind of an unusual name for a cat.”
Rodney swiveled his desk chair around to face John. “How much do you know about poetry?”
John blinked at him, “Not much, but I can see where this is going.”
Rodney scuffed, “I doubt that.” He got up and joined them on the couch, cuddling into John's side. “There’s this sonnet that Edgar Allan Poe wrote called Sonnet to Science.”
John smiled, “I bet it’s your favorite.”
“Yes and no. He was asking science why it destroys creativity, basically saying that it threatens our humanity in the guise of progress. I hate it because it’s right on one level. Science thrives on cold hard facts. But on another hand, I love it because it reminds me that even though I’m a scientist at heart, I have to let my creativity out to play every once and a while or my mind will go stagnant.”
John nodded, “I see. And you named him Poe, why?”
Rodney smirked, “When he was a kitten, he shredded Jeannie’s science homework.”