AN~ This is for ember53608's 10th Anniversary contest. The requirement was a non-Puckabrina prompt for the quote from P&P referenced in the fic. I wasn't really feeling any other pairings for it that hadn't already been done, so here: have a gen family-bonding fic that's crazy last minute because I JUST got free time now.
Daphne has recently discovered the beauty that is period dramas, and in typical Daphne fashion, she's decided to share them with everyone. This summer, Relda's generally ignored TV has been on nearly constantly, playing one movie after another about two people in weird clothes falling in love.
Sabrina is unimpressed. Well, for the most part anyway. She liked Emma just fine. But one of these things was six hours long. And they're... kinda... all the same. Upper class straight white people fall in love and nothing really happens but somehow it still takes them ages to actually get together.
Daphne loves them, though, and Sabrina's always been a bit of a sucker for things that make Daphne happy. So on a rainy day when she doesn't have anything else to do, towards the end of summer, she's willing to sit and watch the movie of the day- the shorter version of Pride and Prejudice. Thank goodness. She doesn't think she could sit through all of that, no matter how bored she is.
Daphne and Puck are giggling over the cuter parts of the movie desperately, flailing and grabbing each other. Puck had, for the first several movies, pretended to be disgusted by the movies, but after the fourth time Sabrina caught him staring at the TV, he'd switched tactics. After that, it was "no, I'm watching to make fun of it," for a good month or so. Sabrina's not sure what happened to make him give that one up, but she's glad it finally happened. She's been strictly instructed by Uncle Jake not to make fun of the fairy for his interest in the movies.
It's difficult, but she doesn't.
So difficult.
Red likes the movies more than Sabrina, but she's gotten a little bored of them. Sabrina can catch her sarcastically mouthing the words along to the script while drawing something in the corner, and she's a little amused. The poor girl picked a best friend who just can't let anything go.
"What is this?" Pinocchio asks, poking his head in about fifteen minutes into the movie.
"Shh!" Puck and Daphne hiss in tandem, not looking away from the screen.
On the TV, Mr. Darcy asks, "And what do you recommend to encourage affection?"
Puck puts a hand over his mouth, his eyes lighting up. Daphne grabs his arm and squeals very softly, flailing a little.
"Dancing," Elizabeth responds, her tone full of so much sass Sabrina has to give her a lot of credit. "Even if one's partner is 'barely tolerable.'"
"Oh snap," Puck says with a grin.
All right, so maybe she doesn't want to make fun of Puck for this as much as she pretends. He's genuinely happy and not in a malicious way like he so often is. She can let him have that.
Pinocchio, still standing in the doorway, makes a face. "This movie is inaccurate. She shouldn't be smiling like that."
Daphne and Puck shush him even more fiercely than before.
"Don't bother," Sabrina advises softly. "They don't care."
"But it's wrong!" Pinocchio snaps. "I can understand appreciating a historical piece, but this is blatantly inaccurate!"
Puck flips him the bird.
Somehow, Pinocchio ends up sitting next to Sabrina on the couch, giving her (and eventually Basil, who gets bored of watching Red draw) a running commentary on what exactly is wrong with this movie, and what's been changed from the book. Sabrina actually appreciates some of this commentary. Then again, she's always been the one who got along with Pinocchio best, oddly enough.
By the end of the movie, Daphne and Puck are furious with Pinocchio, and Sabrina's mildly amused.
"Why can't you just let me have fun, huh?" Daphne demands. "Why do you have to ruin everything, you stupid- pinhead!"
Pinocchio is going to shoot back a comment of his own when Basil interrupts. "You two should dance," he says, in all his seven-year-old wisdom.
"What?" Daphne and Pinocchio ask, turning to look at him in confusion.
"Like the movie," Basil explains. "Dancing makes people like each other, that's what that meant, right? And it worked!"
Daphne and Pinocchio gape at Basil.
Sabrina jumps in and grins, picking her brother up off the couch and sweeping him over to the radio in the corner. "I think that's a great idea, Base. What should they listen to?"
Basil, still balanced on Sabrina's hip, picks out a CD and presses play. Sabrina gives him a high five and they both turn to look expectantly at Pinocchio and Daphne. Strains of angry instrumental music play in the background. Sabrina thinks that her brother has a good grasp of what is fitting, and will be great at comedic timing when he's older.
Pinocchio looks very uncomfortable, and Daphne still looks ticked. But Sabrina and Basil continue to stare, matching blue eyes in brown faces, thick eyebrows raised. Finally Daphne sighs and turns to Pinocchio, hand outstretched.
Pinocchio clears his throat but takes Daphne's hand.
Sabrina and Basil high five again. They watch the awkward dancing between the two teens for a second, and then Sabrina spins suddenly. Basil lets out a shriek of laughter. Sabrina spins again, swooping Basil's head towards the floor like she used to do when he was still a toddler, and then the two of them are dancing, more into it than the other duo.
"Well?" Puck asks Red after a few seconds.
Red looks up from her latest masterpiece and gives a slow smile. "Okay."
Then they're dancing, too, and the six Grimm children, some of whom are nearly adults, are all a whirl of uncoordinated motion to the sound of a stringed instrumental cover of Live and Let Die.
"I don't know any dances to this music," Pinocchio mutters to Daphne.
Sabrina hears Daphne snort as she passes particularly close by, tossing Basil into the air. "You don't have to, doofus. It's about having fun. You think any of them know an actual dance to this song? Loosen up!"
"I'm not very good at that," Pinocchio admits.
"I've noticed," Daphne says.
"Perhaps you could teach me?" Pinocchio suggests.
Sabrina doesn't catch how Daphne answers that, because she's suddenly battling with Puck to get her dance partner back. Red is now "dancing" with Elvis, and Puck has decided that he'll start teaching Basil acrobatics. But when she finally pays attention to Daphne again, she and Pinocchio are smiling at each other, so she figures they worked it out.
And thank goodness. Those two have been butting heads more than she and Puck ever did. Maybe now they can finally have some peace in this house.
Basil shrieks as Puck pulls them both up towards the ceiling, and Sabrina smiles a little at her folly. Nah. The Grimms will never be a peaceful family.
And, well, that's okay. She kinda likes it like this.
