Chapter Text
Beagle walked into the Doctor’s office, blushing preemptively. “Good morning, Doctor! I’m your guard for today, so don’t worry about a thing.”
“I certainly won’t, Bea-” He looked up mid-sentence and had to do a double-take. “Beagle? I almost don’t recognize you in that outfit.”
“Miss Orchid picked it out for me. Do you like it?”
The Doctor smiled. “It suits you better; after all, you’ve been wearing those other clothes since you got here, but you’re not a rookie anymore.”
“I’m not, am I?” Her face was trying to balance embarrassment and pride. “Um...well, if you need me, I’ll be over here.”
“Before you settle in, could you come here for a second?”
Beagle walked over, confused. “What is it, Doctor?”
“Crouch a little bit.” She complied, still confused, but understood as he began rubbing her head. “You deserve every bit of praise you get, and I’m sorry it took a wardrobe chance for you to get it. Every day, I hear about you going above and beyond your responsibilities to make Rhodes Island a better place for everyone in it. Take heart, and take pride in yourself, Beagle. You are the bedrock our organization depends on.”
“Mmm~ Thank you, Doctor! I’ll keep doing my best.” She didn’t move for her post, however, and the Doctor didn’t stop as her tail began to wag more and more vigorously.
It was when she accidentally knocked a pen onto the floor with her tail that they realized what was happening; Beagle took a couple of steps back, blushing fiercely, but accidentally stepped on the pen and slipped, falling forward. The Doctor caught her, but fell out of his chair in the process as it fell out from underneath him, and the pair landed Doctor-first on the floor behind the desk, Beagle’s face pressed against his mask. She sat up as he took off his face coverings. “Heh. That was something.”
“Sorry, Doctor.” She wiped something from her eye. “You give me all this attention, and then I go and do that...”
“You were excited, Beagle, I don’t blame you for that. Besides-” He stopped himself.
Beagle looked back at him from her perch on his thighs. “What is it, Doctor?”
“Um...” He diverted his eyes and muttered, “I kind of like being this close to you.”
“I didn’t catch that, Doctor.” She moved on all fours so their heads were aligned again, arms-length apart.
The Doctor took a deep breath and repeated, “I like being this close to you.”
“You do?” Then she caught on. “Oh!”
“I know this is a terrible excuse, but your old outfit hid you rather than, well...It’s hard not to notice you, now...”
She collapsed the distance between them. “I knew Miss Orchid could help me!”
“Yeah...Wait.” He looked at her, head resting on the floor to his right. “Was this what you were hoping for?”
“Miss Orchid told me that all I needed was a makeover to catch someone’s eye, and she was right.”
He sighed. “So it wasn’t me specifically, then...”
“Huh?” Beagle blushed. “O-oh, Doctor, no, that’s not what...I didn’t tell her who I wanted to impress...”
“Oh, thank goodness.”
She smiled. “Why were you so worried?”
“Because,” the Doctor blushed, “it would be really awkward to ask you on a date knowing I wasn’t who you’re interested.”
“A date? With me?! Oh, yes, please!...Here, let me help you up-”
He shook his head as he hugged her close. “In a minute.”
“Okay~” Her voice euphorically warbled. “Just a minute...”