Work Text:
Martin’s halfway up the institute steps when he hears a noise.
It sounds like a bunch of high-pitched squeaks, coming from the alleyway next to the institute. He’s tempted to just ignore it; the darkening clouds look like they’re going to open up any second, and besides, he has to go into work.
The noises don’t stop, though, and after a quick internal debate Martin’s curiosity gets the better of him. He goes back down the steps, turns the corner into the alleyway, and finds…
A box with several small kittens, squealing and mewling. Martin just about melts as he leans down to inspect them. There’s five total: an orange and white tabby, two grey tabbies - one dark grey, one light grey - and two solid black ones. They’re a bit skinny, but otherwise in good health, as far as he can tell.
“Aw, look at you,” he coos. “What are you doing out here, huh?”
The dark grey tabby mews sadly up at him, and his heart breaks a little. The kittens can’t be more than few weeks old and yet they’re all alone, left in a dingy cardboard box.
Looking around, Martin doesn’t see any sign of the mother. He bites his lip, trying to figure out what to do. He’d really prefer not to take a bunch of young kittens away from their mother, nor does he want to get in trouble… but he also doesn’t want to risk just leaving them here when he has no idea if the mother’s even alive.
The sky booms above Martin’s head, and the patter of rain on his shoulder makes the decision for him.
Fuck it. He grabs the box and quickly heads into the institute. Jon won’t be happy, but hopefully he’ll be understanding enough to let the kittens stay for a bit until Martin can get them to a shelter.
By the time Martin makes it down into the archives, Tim and Sasha have already begun their work for the day. Sasha gives Martin a curious look as passes by her desk. “Morning, Martin. What’s in the box?”
Before Martin can answer, one of the kittens squeaks loudly, and his coworkers stare at him in confusion.
“Is that… a kitten?” Tim asks. “Did you bring a kitten to work?”
Martin sighs and carefully sets the box on his desk. “Kittens, actually. I found them in the alley next to the institute. I know animals aren’t allowed down here, but they were all alone and it was starting to rain, and- I didn’t want to just leave them there.”
“Don’t worry. I think you made the right decision,” Sasha replies. She gets up to go look at the kittens, Tim following right behind, and Martin’s anxiety slowly ebbs away as he watches his coworkers’ faces break out into delighted smiles.
“Aren’t you adorable,” Tim murmurs. He gently picks up one of the black kittens and holds it to his chest, laughing when it squeaks at him. Sasha snaps a quick photo before turning back to the box.
“My turn.” She takes the orange and white tabby and pets it on the head with one finger. It presses its head up, eager for scritches. “Oh, you’re just the sweetest little thing.”
Martin smiles. “I’m glad you guys like them, at least. I don’t think Jon will be as welcoming.”
“I don’t know, he seems like a cat person,” Tim says.
Sasha looks up and frowns. “That doesn’t mean he’ll be okay with having animals in the archives. Remember how angry he was when that dog got down here?”
“Yeah, but that was a dog. These are kittens.” Tim holds out his kitten. “You don’t think Jon could actually get mad at a face like this, do you?”
“…Probably not,” Sasha admits. “I still don’t know that he’ll be happy about them being down here, though.”
“I could tell him, if you like,” Tim offers Martin. “He might take it better if he hears it from me. I mean, I really don’t think he’ll be too mad, but just in case…”
Martin shakes his head. “That’s alright, I can do it.” He was the one to bring the kittens inside, he should be the one to tell Jon.
Tim shrugs. “Suit yourself.”
“Good luck,” Sasha tells him, before turning back to the kittens.
“Thanks.” Martin doesn’t feel particularly lucky as he walks over to Jon’s office. Worry starts to creep back through him as he raises a hand and raps his knuckles against the door.
“Come in,” Jon answers.
Martin takes a deep breath and enters the office. Jon’s sitting at his desk, hunched over a document. He looks up, and his expression morphs into an unimpressed frown as he realizes it’s Martin who interrupted him.
“Yes, Martin, what is it?”
“Um…” Martin gulps. Here goes nothing. “So I had sort of a situation come up-“
“What sort of ‘situation’?” Jon asks sharply.
“You remember when I accidentally let that dog into the archives?”
Jon initially doesn’t react, just stares at Martin in disbelief. Then his face contorts, eyebrows knitting together and nostrils flaring as he glares. “Don’t tell me you brought another dog down here,” he says, tone acidic.
“Not a dog!” Martin quickly assures him. “I just- I found these kittens outside the institute, and-“
Just like that, all of Jon’s anger seems to melt away. The fire leaves his eyes, quickly replaced by keen interest. He sits up a little straighter. “Kittens?”
His sudden change in demeanor completely throws Martin off. “Uh…yes? I’m sorry, I know I shouldn’t have brought them down here, but they were all alone, and-“
“It’s fine, Martin.” Jon replies, waving a hand dismissively. He stands up from his desk. “I’d like to see them, if you don’t mind.”
“Oh. I-I mean, yeah, of course.” Martin’s completely baffled by how okay Jon apparently is with all this, but he’ll take it. Better than getting yelled at, after all. “Here, they’re over on my desk…”
He leads Jon over to his desk, and the assistants watch with baited breath as Jon looks into the box without a word.
Jon sticks his hand in the box, palm up, and the light grey tabby comes over to inspect him. He stands stock still as it sniffs him, its little nose twitching intently. After several seconds, it deems him safe, and loudly squeaks up at him in a demand for attention.
“Alright, alright, I’m listening,” Jon replies. He gently picks up the kitten and holds it to his chest with a small smile. It closes its eyes as he scratches it behind the ears. “There you go. Poor little things, left outside and alone. You’ll be safe here, though, I promise.”
His voice is quiet and kind, like a parent trying to reassure a scared child. Martin can’t believe it.
“Huh. Guess he’s a softie, after all,” Sasha says.
Jon, apparently having forgotten there were other people in the room, jumps at the sound of her voice. He places the kitten back in the box with its siblings and turns to his coworkers.
“Right,” he says stiffly. “All of you, back to work. I’ll take the kittens back to my office so they don’t cause any trouble.”
Before anyone can object, Jon grabs the box and makes a hasty retreat to his office, kicking the door closed once he’s inside. The assistants stare after him.
“…You were, right, Tim. He’s a cat person.”
“I knew it!”
--
Half an hour later, by which point Sasha’s left to go do follow-up on a statement, the door to Jon’s office clicks open. Martin watches from the corner of his eye as Jon walks over to Tim’s desk, a single piece of paper in hand.
Tim looks up from his computer. “How’s it going, bossman?”
Jon rolls his eyes at the nickname. He’d long since given up the fight to get Tim to stop calling him that. “Are you busy at the moment?”
“Nah, I’m just about finished with this report. What’s up?”
Jon holds out the piece of paper. “Would you mind heading out and picking up a few things? I’ll reimburse you, of course.”
Tim takes the paper and reads it over. As he gets further down the list, his brows furrow. “This is a list of cat supplies.”
Jon fake coughs. “Yes, well… the archives aren’t exactly equipped to handle kittens.”
Tim grins up at him. “Aw, boss, have you gone soft on us?”
“No, I just want to make sure they’re properly cared for,” Jon replies, scowling. “Er, until we can get them to a shelter, of course.”
“I can take care of that, if you’d like,” Martin chimes in. He’s spent the last several minutes looking at nearby shelters online, trying to find a suitable one to drop the kittens off at. There’s one a few blocks away that looks promising.
Jon waves him off. “That’s alright, Martin. I don’t mind doing it myself.”
“…If you say so.”
“Right,” Tim says, standing up. “I’m off to go get those supplies for the kittens you totally haven’t grown attached to, boss.”
Jon’s scowl deepens. “Yes, yes, just hurry back.” He turns and stalks back to his office, shutting the door behind him once more.
--
“Jon? May I come in?”
Martin’s standing outside the door to Jon’s office, holding a warm mug of tea. The archives are down to just the two of them now; Tim and Sasha are still out on their respective missions, and Martin has no idea when either of them will return.
…If he’s being honest with himself, Martin hates being alone in the archives. There’s just something about the basement that sets him on edge, makes him feel like he’s being watched, especially when he’s by himself.
Hence, the tea: by giving Jon tea, Martin gets a little human interaction, and Jon gets a little energy boost. Everybody wins.
“Yes,” Jon answers. It’s so quiet Martin almost misses it.
He opens the door, steps into the office… and nearly has a heart attack.
Jon’s sitting on the floor, back against his office couch and legs stretched out in front of him. In his blanket-covered lap are all five kittens, curled up and sound asleep. Jon’s staring at them with a look of utter fondness.
It is, quite possibly, the most adorable thing Martin’s ever seen.
Without looking up, Jon motions for Martin to come closer. He carefully does so, taking light, quiet steps as he moves across the room. Once he’s reached Jon, he holds the mug out in offering.
“Just put it on my desk, thank you.”
“S-sure.” He takes the mug and puts it on the desk before rejoining Jon by the couch.
For several moments, neither man speaks, electing to simply watch the kittens. A couple of them are twitching in their sleep, paws flexing as they chase after imaginary prey.
“Pretty cute, huh?” Martin asks, very careful to keep his voice down.
“They are,” Jon agrees. He brings a hand up and gently strokes the light grey tabby. Save for a quick chirp and a raise of the head, it barely reacts before settling back down again. “I’ve decided to keep this one, actually.”
Martin smiles at him. “Yeah?”
Jon nods. “I already picked out a name for her, too: The Lieutenant.”
It’s an odd name for a cat, but something about it is so distinctly Jon. “That’s a nice name. You could call her Lulu for short.”
Jon’s face scrunches up. “She’s a cat, Martin. She’s a dignified creature, and as such, deserves a proper name.”
“What, ‘Lulu’ isn’t dignified enough for you?” Martin jokes.
“Hardly,” Jon replies in a dry tone. “’The Lieutenant’ is much more respectable.”
“She must be pretty talented to have been made lieutenant at such a young age.”
“Oh, she’s very talented. Top ranks in all her classes.”
Martin looks at him in surprise before chuckling. “Oh! Good one.”
“I am capable of making a joke every once in a while, you know,” Jon says. He finally looks up then, turning his smile on Martin. It’s so soft, so radiant, that Martin almost forgets how to breathe.
“Y-yeah, ‘course you are.” Martin’s face suddenly feels much hotter. “Anyway! I should probably get back to work, so I will go… do that. Enjoy the kittens!” With that, he turns and swiftly walks away before Jon can respond.
When Martin leaves the office, he sees Sasha returning to her desk, evidently done with follow-up. She glances over at him, and her eyebrows crinkle in amusement as she takes in his burning cheeks.
“What’s got you so flustered?” she asks.
Martin groans and buries his face in his hands. “Sashaaa. I went to give Jon tea, and… he was cuddling. With the kittens.”
Sasha’s eyebrows shoot up. “No way.”
“They were all asleep in his lap. It was so cute, Sasha.”
“Alright, I have to see this for myself.” Sasha finishes setting her things down and quickly walks over to Jon’s office, closing the door behind her as she enters. Once she’s out of sight, Martin sits down at his own desk and lays his head against the cool wood.
It was just supposed to be a silly little crush. Something he could fantasize about without getting too emotional over. It wasn’t supposed to be serious, because there was no chance of Jon ever liking him back. Of course, he knows realistically that what happened in the office doesn’t mean anything, doesn’t suggest that Jon might actually be interested in him. It’s just… Jon had been so happy, and his smile was so lovely, and he’d actually been nice for once, and- God, Martin’s gay little heart really didn’t need this.
Martin’s phone bzzzes in his pocket and he quickly fishes it out, eager for a distraction. When he turns the phone on he sees a notification that Sasha sent a message to the archival assistants group chat. He unlocks the phone and opens the messaging app.
Archives Chat
Sashsquatch: [Image ID: photo of Jonathan Sims, sitting on the floor and leaning back against a couch. There are five kittens in his lap, all of them asleep and looking content. Jon is scowling at the camera.]
Timbourine: :0!!!!
Timbourine: I cannot BELIEVE that I am missing out on the bossman snuggling with a bunch of kittens
Timbourine: This is a tragedy
Sashsquatch: Honestly he has no right to be this cute. It’s unfair
Martini: I told you!!!!
Timbourine: Marto I am impressed that you of all people witnessed this in person and lived to tell the tale
Martini: What do you mean by that Tim
Timbourine: :)
Martini: TIM
Sashsquatch: Martin I’m sorry to tell you this but your crush on Jon is visible from space
Timbourine: It really is
Martini: …
Martini: …crap
Sashsquatch: If it makes you feel any better, I doubt he’s noticed
Timbourine: Yeah he’s totally oblivious to that sort of thing
Timbourine: You could drop an anvil inscribed with the words “I’m flirting with you” on him and he’d think you meant it platonically
Timbourine: So your secret’s safe for now
Martini: Oh thank god
Timbourine: But you aren’t
Martini: Wait what
Timbourine: Jon?? Really???
Timbourine: I mean I like the guy just fine, but you have to admit, he’s an arse to you
Martini: He’s not that bad!!!
Martini: Yeah he can be kinda rude sometimes, but he was fine today! He was being perfectly nice when I brought him tea earlier!
Timbourine: I’ll believe it when I see it, right Sash?
Sashsquatch: Actually, I kinda get where Martin’s coming from
Sashsquatch: Sure, he’s a bit of a dick right now, but he’s like that with everyone at first. Once he warms up to you, he’s a surprisingly good guy
Sashsquatch: And he *was* pretty sweet cuddled up with those kittens
Martini: THANK you, Sasha
Timbourine: You know what? That’s fair
Timbourine: Still gonna (lovingly) tease you for it though :p
Sashsquatch: Oh absolutely
Martini: Hmph
Sashsquatch: <3
Timbourine: <3
Martini: <3
Sashsquatch: Wait guys
Sashsquatch: You know that one light grey tabby in the litter? Apparently Jon’s adopting it!
Sashsquatch: He says her name is “The Lieutenant”
Martini: Oh yeah he told me about that!
Martini: I suggested calling her Lulu for short but he shot it down bc it wasn’t “dignified” enough for her lol
Timbourine: asdfdkldfjlk “not dignified enough”
Timbourine: He’s such an old man lmao
Timbourine: Also
Timbourine: You know what this means
Timbourine: Archives cat time
Sashsquatch: I don’t think he’d be willing to keep a cat in the archives, Tim
Timbourine: A man can dream, can’t he?
Sashsquatch: Yes, and I will crush those dreams <3
Timbourine: >:0!!!!
Martin quietly laughs to himself before putting his phone away and pulling out a report he needs to finish up. Just as he starts proofreading, the door to Jon’s office opens and Sasha strolls out, an amused grin on her face.
Martin smiles at her as she returns to her desk. “You’re evil, you know that?”
She grins back at him. “I try my best.”
--
Martin really should have left an hour ago.
It’s not that he wanted to stay late at work, he just… got in the zone at some point while researching a case, and before he knew it, it was an hour past normal leaving time. It wasn’t necessarily an uncommon occurrence, but it was frustrating nonetheless.
Martin starts packing up, grumbling to himself. With any luck, leaving this late meant he’d managed to avoid the worst of the end-of-day crowd on the tube. He loathed being pressed up against a bunch of strangers.
As he’s about to leave, he’s startled by the door to Jon’s office swinging open. Out comes Jon, one hand full of shopping bags and the other holding a large cat carrier. He’s clearly struggling with the load, judging by his shaking arms and grit teeth. Distressed mews rise up from the carrier, and Jon turns to address the kittens.
“It’s alright, I’ve got you,” he says. “We’ll be in the car shortly and we’ll get you all taken care of.”
Martin rolls his eyes. Of course Jon was stubborn enough to try and take everything up to his car in one trip. Martin’s not the least bit surprised, not after several months of working with him. “Would you like some help with that?”
Jon’s head snaps up at the sound of Martin’s voice. “Oh! I didn’t realize you were still here, Martin.”
“Yeah, I kinda got wrapped up in research and lost track of the clock.” He gestures at the bags in Jon’s hand. “So do you need any help, or…?”
“That would be nice, yes.” Jon awkwardly holds the bags out, and Martin rushes to take them. Once they’re out of Jon’s grasp, he slips his newly-freed arm under the cat carrier and braces it against his chest.
“Right. If you’ll follow me to the car…” Jon leads the way out of the archives and past the front doors of the of the institute to the nearby car park. Once they reach his car, he sets the carrier down, pulls out the keys, and unlocks the car. “The bags can go in the back, thank you.”
“Got it.” Martin puts the bags on the car floor, then moves away so Jon can set the kittens on the backseat.
“Don’t worry,” Jon tells the kittens, clicking the seatbelt into place to secure the carrier. “It’s just a little car ride, and then a quick visit to the vet. I think you’ll like this vet, she sounded very kind over the phone.”
One of the kittens squawks indignantly, and Jon clicks his tongue. “Honestly, Lulu, you haven’t even met this woman yet. At least give her a chance.”
A small burst of fondness rises up in Martin’s chest as he watches the interaction. It’s so ridiculously endearing that he can’t help being amused by it. He almost lets out a laugh, when something occurs to him. Wait, did he just say-
“I thought you didn’t like the name Lulu?” he blurts out.
Jon freezes, and then huffs. “Yes, well… it’s not the worst name in the world, and it would probably be useful for her to have a nickname, so…”
Choosing to ignore the snark, Martin smiles. “I think it suits her, even if it is less dignified than her official title.”
That gets a chuckle out of Jon. He steps back and closes the car door, then turns to look at Martin.
“You know, you did a very kind thing today, rescuing those kittens.”
Martin shrugs. “I just found them, you’re the one who’s been making sure they get taken care of.”
“Yes, but you could’ve easily chosen to leave them where you found them, and instead you helped them. That’s very admirable, Martin.”
“Oh, well… thank you,” Martin replies. He offers a shy smile, which Jon returns.
They stand there, smiling at each other for what feels like an eternity, until Jon clears his throat. “I do actually need to take the kittens to the vet, so if you don’t mind…”
Martin blinks. “Right! Right, sorry, I should let you get going, I’ll just… see you tomorrow?”
“See you tomorrow,” Jon echoes softly, still smiling. He goes to enter his car, and Martin takes that as his cue to leave and head to the tube station.
The smile remains plastered on his face the entire way home.