Work Text:
Buddie Bingo Square - Adopt a Pet
"We have reports that the animal shelter is on fire, and officers and animal control are evacuating as many animals as they can." Captain Bobby Nash says on the radio, looking at his crew in the engine with him.
"Are there any injuries, Cap?" Howard "Chimney" Han asks, gum snapping.
"Not human injuries, some of the dogs and cats are suffering some burns and smoke inhalation. The quickest way to the fire is through some kennels and the cat condos. The 133 is on scene, battling the fire, so they want us to assist in evacuating any animals in the building. We probably will lose some, but the officers have gotten a lot of the big dogs out."
Their resident golden retriever, Evan "Buck" Buckley is quiet, contemplating what they are about to walk into. Shelters were full again, with people surrendering pets after going back to work. He desperately wanted one to keep him company, probably a cat, and hearing that a fire was ravaging a place where the animals couldn't escape was heartbreaking to him.
"The volunteers at the shelters told us not to worry about leashes but to grab the dogs and run. They might be scared but they will follow us. The cats are the ones they are worried about since they hide." Bobby says, when Buck feels a hand on his leg, belonging to his boyfriend Eddie Diaz.
"We will do everything we can for them, Buck, plus think about telling Jee and Christopher about saving animals!" Eddie says, getting a small smile.
"If I tell Chris this story, he's gonna beg for a pet," Buck replies, getting a laugh from Hen Wilson.
"I brought home a dog from the earthquake, Buck, you are definitely walking out of here with some sort of pet," she says, as they pull up to the towering flames at the shelter. Several other houses are responding, so they suit up and enter where others are. The police officers are to the side, coughing from the smoke but holding dogs.
"Cats are in there, Buck, Eddie go that way, grab as many cats as you can find." They veer off toward some of the heavier smoke and flames, and come across some dog kennels, other firefighters coming their way with cats and dogs.
"We got these," a firefighter from Station 6 says, "You two are more experienced in rescues. Go find the ones that need it the most."
They wander down and come across a room where three dogs and three cats are huddled, obviously terrified. They stay low, enticing the animals to come toward them. They see they aren't a threat and allow them to tie leashes so they don't lose them in the smoke. One dog, a shepherd mix, has a cat curled up by their stomach, so Buck reaches down carefully and ensures the cat in his turnout, watching as Eddie does the same to the other two.
With the cat hanging onto his suspenders, claws in and not going anywhere, they lead the animals out and away from the flames. Bobby comes up to them, taking one of the improvised leashes, directing them through the thick smoke.
The flames are ramping up behind them, and any animal, unless they escaped, is long gone if they come back. Getting these animals out was a save, considering how close the fire was. They breach the outside, rushing the animals toward vets holding oxygen and looking over the scared dogs and cats.
The three men whip off their masks, and their turnouts to reveal the three cats they saved along with the dogs. The one Buck has is the smallest, a black cat with big green eyes, while Eddie has two grays with blue eyes attached to him.
They heard coos from the volunteers and police officers, including Athena who was also dirty with soot. Buck tries to get the cat on him to let go, but fails so he just sits down and helps the poor cat calm down. The shepherd mix that had been protecting it, comes up to him and lays its head on his thigh.
"Seems you made a few friends, Buckaroo," Athena quips, nodding to his animal companions. "Sounds like they have most of the animals out, minus the ones closest to the fire."
Eddie manages to detach his cats, and gives them to the vet. He comes over, sees that the black cat is still in Buck's arms, the shepherd on his thighs and just melts.
"Oh God, someone take a photo of that and send it to Taylor," Chimney says, walking up, his face covered in soot. "He'll make the news with just this image alone."
"It will be better if the headline says, ' Firefighter adopts cat and dog he rescued from the shelter fire." Hen replies, when Eddie snaps the photo himself. Buck pays his family no mind, motioning for the vet tech to come near them with the oxygen mask and to look over the animals.
Eddie's brain has stopped working, seeing the muscular arms that love to hold him down while they have sex, cradling a small black cat against his chest, suspenders only amplifying the contrast. He texts Carla and his family the image, and gets heart emojis in response.
"Eddie, I think you might be adopting a cat… and a dog," Bobby says, coming up next to him.
"If I can get pictures like this, I will gladly accept that fate," Eddie replies, watching as his boyfriend pouts when the animals are taken away. "Babe, they need to ensure they are alright. Let's ask the volunteers what their names are, so when we come back to adopt them, we get the right animals."
Buck nods, walking toward the vet and volunteers, getting a piece of paper in return. He comes back, a small smile but still grim. "We have to wait until they are clear of the smoke inhalation. Then we can come back."
"Let's assist the others in knocking these flames down, then we are on recovery and overhaul," Bobby states, becoming the Captain once more. They suit up again, grabbing the hoses and knocking down the flames bursting through the roof.
They find themselves several hours later, walking through the blackened wall and drenched hallways, searching every room for any animals that may have hidden. Buck finds two cowering in a corner, fur singed but otherwise ok. They find fifteen more cats, well over the estimate of animals they expected to find alive.
"Cats have some of the best survival instincts," Buck states, loving on the two he found, both tuxedos. Eddie has a Siamese and Tabby in his arms, all fairly healthy and found well outside of the cat condo room that was destroyed. They had found some cats that didn't make it, and allowed the volunteers to grab them so they could say goodbye, including the office cat.
After giving the surviving cats to the animal shelter workers, the five of them sat on the curb, drinking the water that was given to them.
"I'm surprised we found so many alive," Hen says, getting murmurs of agreement from the others.
"I think most of the cats sensed something was wrong and were able to run away, hiding in corners we couldn't get to," Buck says, draining the rest of his water. "They can fit through small spaces. I'm not surprised."
"You going back to the vet where the dog and cat you rescued last night are?" Chimney asks, gauging Eddie's reaction, who is just as curious.
"You know Chris wouldn't mind it, Buck. I don't mind it, we have discussed getting a pet for a while." Eddie says, assuring Buck he's ok with it. "I think… I think it's the universe telling us those two were made to be a part of our family."
Buck nods, as they all climb into the truck, exhausted to the bones, their shift over finally. They shower at the station, getting dressed and trying to keep their eyes open. "Hey Buck, called the vet office and no one has been able to adopt those two. Apparently they are waiting for a certain blonde firefighter to come by tomorrow to pick them up."
The tired firefighter grins his megawatt smiles, "Thanks Cap. I'll let them know I'll be by to get them with Eddie and Christopher. After we sleep and pick up what we need for them."
"Oh and Buck?"
Buck tilts his head, reminiscent of the dog they were about to bring home.
"You did good today. And uh… you're on the news." Bobby runs out, when Buck inquires what he was talking about, when Eddie shoves his face, showing an article Channel 8 ran with a picture of him cradling the black cat with the shepherd dog looking on.
"Ok, who sent Taylor this picture?" Buck asks, as the other file out of the locker room, "I'll find out who did it and get them back!"
Eddie laughs, tugging his boyfriend out and toward the truck. "We need to get home and sleep so we can pick Christopher up and tell him the good news."
Buck smiles, driving home, one hand intertwined with Eddie's. They strip each other, have slow, gentle sex, reaffirming their love, and fall asleep, alarm set in enough time to get their son.
Chris is so happy to see them, hugging them both. "I thought Abuela would be picking me up, since you had such a long shift," he says, grinning in Buck's arms.
"Well we have a surprise for you," Buck says, sitting down with Chris on a bench, Eddie next to them. "Remember how you have been asking for a pet?"
The boy nods, smile growing "Well last night, there was a big fire at one of the animal shelters that we responded to. We rescued a lot of animals, but two in particular chose me, well us in general. Want to see the picture?"
Eddie brings it up on his phone and shows Chris, whose eyes grow big. "A dog, and a cat?" he asked, incredulously.
"Yeah, superman, the dog was protecting the cat when we rescued them. We can't adopt one without the other," Buck explains, watching as the kid bounces up and down excitedly. "Because of the fire, they have to stay at the vet until tomorrow. So we are going to pick up everything we can possibly need to make them feel at home with us."
"Can you help us do that?" Eddie asks, getting an enthusiastic yell from his son. They trek back to the car, and head to the nearest Petsmart, and stock up on everything dogs and cats need.
They go to sleep, really excited to pick up the newest members of their family tomorrow. The shelter volunteers told us that the shepherd mix, Daisy, was really good with kids, and loves Star, the black cat. They loved their names so they were gonna keep them, and soon they were at the vet ready to adopt the newest members of their family.
Daisy immediately goes to Buck, nudging his hand til she gets his attention. "She's a Great Pyrenees and Shepherd Mix, but small for her size. We estimate she's about a year old, and obviously great with kids."
Daisy moved onto Christopher, licking him, tail wagging. Star was already rubbing against Buck and Eddie's legs, little meows begging for attention. "Star is about three, and has her heartworm, flea medications and vaccines updated, same with Daisy. When they cuddle, you really can't tell who is who. But they love each other." The worker chokes up for a minute. "I am so happy that you guys took the time to rescue all of the cats and dogs. They mean so much to us, and I am so happy that you are taking their two home. They deserve the best home possible."
"And we are going to try our best to give them that," Eddie says, putting his hand on her arms. "I would say it's our job to save as many lives as we can, including animals. But these two chose us first. It was meant to be."
The girl nods, a tear falling as she looks at Buck cuddling Star. "Let's sign some paperwork so you can take them home."
The Buckley-Diaz clan expands to two others, a dog and cat, who adapt fairly quickly to their house and the amount of people who visit. Star is still a bit skittish, but loves to sit on everyone's lap, and loves to antagonize Chimney.
Daisy loves everyone, and serves as a sort of therapy dog for Chris. They sign her up for the classes to train her, noticing she is extremely well behaved and smart. She sleeps in Chris's room every night, sometimes even with the almost teenager.
During the day, Star loves to cuddle on top of Daisy but at night, will curl up in Buck's arms or on Eddie's chest. She purrs them to sleep, their nightmares very few and far between. Daisy passes her classes, and is allowed with Chris to school on certain days, able to sense if he's in pain or distressed.
The Buckley-Diaz clan expands a year later, when they adopt a baby girl they rescued from a foster home fire. Star is her best friend, and many many pictures are taken.
It only took an animal shelter catching fire for them to find the animals that would complete their family.
The universe really does scream.