CSI: New York – T.G.I.F.
Chapter 2: Squawk
Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters; except 'Papa Mac' he's mine ;) and Squawk... regrettably I do own him...
A/N: A few people had asked me to write more of these Mac/Lucy one shots, and once again I was easily inspired to write this piece from spending the evening with my own goddaughter (and her new toy which you will get to know in this chapter... *groan*) Who needs a muse when you've got a 6 year old who never tires from talking? lol. Anyway, enjoy.
A/N 2: To give you a rough idea, I'd say Lucy is probably close to 4 years old when these stories take place...
...
Another week seemed to have flown by faster than usual and Mac couldn't be happier that the weekend was finally here. His now weekly tradition of caring for his goddaughter on Friday nights so that her parents could have some much needed adult time quickly became something he looked forward to. True at her age, she could certainly be a handful at times; bed time in particular; and the fact that the usually stubborn, authoritative detective and marine veteran turned into a complete 'softy' at even the slightest protest from the small child didn't help matters much either. One thing was certain, little Lucy had 'Papa Mac' wrapped around her tiny finger, and the worst part was she knew it.
Still, Mac wouldn't trade his time with Lucy for anything in the world. The way her face lit up every time she saw him was something he would never tire from. He looked up to the clock on his office wall and felt himself instantly grinning as the time neared 6p.m. Knowing Danny and Lindsay would be there any minute to drop their daughter off Mac's grin quickly turned back to his more familiar frown as he focussed all his attention back to the case files on his desk that needed his attention before he would be able to leave for the evening.
A few minutes later Mac finally closed the last case file and began neatly stacking them on the corner of his desk. Loud clunking noises and high pitched laughter echoed throughout the hallway outside his office and he looked up from his desk with a smile at what he knew all too well was the sound of Lucy running through the hallways; probably escaping her parents once again. She stopped outside his office door and tried desperately with all her strength to push her way inside but alas couldn't get the door to budge. Her face a bright shade pink from all the running and straining to push the door open caused Mac to let out a small chuckle as he walked across his office and over to the door. Pulling the door open for her Lucy sprinted inside, throwing her arms around Mac's legs, as she wasn't quite tall enough yet to reach his waist.
"Hey kiddo" Mac greeted her with a warm smile as he crouched down to her level and she quickly threw her arms around his neck, nearly knocking him over in the process.
"Hi Papa Mac!" Lucy squealed with delight.
"Where's mommy and daddy?" Mac asked, attempting at using his 'serious' tone as he pulled her arms off of his neck and looked her straight in the eyes.
"Ummm..." Lucy began, head hanging and foot nervously pivoting back and forth into the carpet.
"You're supposed to wait for mommy and daddy right? Not run off on your own?"
"Yeah..." Lucy managed with a barely audible whimper. "I sorry Papa Mac" she began again, her big blue eyes now glistening and full on pouting expression masterfully displayed on her face.
"Okay" Mac sighed, his smile finally returning as he scooped her up into his arms and headed out into the hallway to track down Danny and Lindsay.
"Lucy!" Lindsay exclaimed as her and Danny rounded the corner to the hallway of Mac's office and Lucy was quick to bury her face into Mac's shoulder.
"Don't think you can hide behind Papa Mac" Danny commented and Lucy's grip around Mac's neck only got tighter.
"Sorry Mac" Lindsay began explaining. "Sheldon stopped us in the hallway and we were talking for a minute and next thing we knew Lucy was nowhere to be seen"
"Yeah, luckily we knew exactly where she was headed" Danny huffed.
"Aw, don't be too hard on her, she already heard it from me" Mac explained and Lindsay rolled her eyes and let out a small laugh.
"What?" Mac wondered.
"Yeah I'm sure you were real hard on her Papa Mac" Lindsay teased.
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"It means you're a sucker for those big baby blues" Danny smirked.
"I am not" Mac tried to protest.
"Oh please, one look from her and you cave faster than you can blink" Lindsay added.
Mac opened his mouth to respond but when he realized he had nothing to retaliate with he decided it was time to change the subject.
"Well, look at the time you guys are probably going to be late" Mac mentioned in haste, glancing at his watch.
"You're sure you don't mind keeping her overnight?" Lindsay asked, for at least the 5th time since the day had started. "This show we're going to see probably won't be getting out till late and I just don't want to be picking her up in the middle of the night"
"Lindsay, it's fine" Mac assured her. "Right Luce?" he asked, lightly bouncing her in his arms.
"Right" she added with a firm nod.
"Okay, you be good for Papa Mac squirt" Danny warned, patting the top of her head.
"Uh huh" Lucy nodded again.
"I love you" Lindsay told her.
"Love you too!"
"Good night Mac, and thanks" Lindsay smiled as her and Danny turned away to head towards the elevator.
"Daddy wait!" Lucy called out. "Squawk!"
"Squawk?" Mac immediately questioned and Danny rolled his eyes as he turned back to them.
"Yeah, sorry sweetheart, Daddy almost forgot Squawk" Danny remarked as he handed Lucy's backpack to Mac.
"What's Squawk?" Mac asked again as Lucy stretched her arms out to the bag Mac now carried. She got her hands on the zipper and quickly pulled the bag open and pulled the large blue and yellow stuffed bird out from the bag.
"Squawk!" Lucy exclaimed, holding it up in front of Mac.
"Oh, it's your bird" Mac smirked and Lucy nodded.
"Uh huh. And he can talk!"
"Really? What can he say?"
"Hello" Lucy spoke and the electronic toy echoed her. "Hello" it squawked and Lucy's face lit up.
"Wow, does it say anything else?"
"Um..." Lucy pondered for a moment, looking up at the ceiling. "Watch this! I love you Papa Mac" she stated simply, then after a brief moment she began again, this time in a high pitched squeak, attempting to mimic the bird; "I love you Papa Mac"
"See!" Lucy exclaimed once more, returning to her normal voice. "He copied me!"
"I see" Mac chuckled and Danny shook his head.
"Yeah, it's cute now, give it 5 minutes, you'll be wanting to test out if Squawk really can fly when you throw him out of your office window"
"Daddy!" Lucy gasped, clutching her grip around the bird even tighter.
"Daddy's just kidding" Lindsay quickly mentioned, offering a stern glare in Danny's direction.
"She just got that thing and she hasn't let it out of her sight and has been sleeping with it every night" Lindsay explained further. "You're in for a long night, consider yourself warned" she lightly chuckled.
"We'll be fine" Mac insisted and Danny and Lindsay exchanged smirks; knowing full well what Mac was in for.
Mac watched the two parents take their leave before setting Lucy down and heading back into his office to retrieve his jacket. He straightened a few more things on his desk then held out his hand to Lucy who quickly accepted it and they stepped back out into the hallway and headed into the elevator.
...
It was almost 10:00 when Stella found herself nearly falling asleep in front of the television on her sofa; her phone buzzing across the coffee table pulling her out of her sleepy state as she reached for it.
"I'm not on call tonight" she grumbled into the empty apartment as she picked up the phone. She flipped it open and arched an eyebrow as she read the seemingly frantic message.
'Stella, I need your help. Please. Are you busy? I'm sorry, I know it's your night off, and I wouldn't ask otherwise, but it's Lucy... – Mac'
'Mac, what is it? Is everything alright? Is Lucy okay? What's going on?'
She tapped her fingers nervously along the arm of the sofa, waiting for Mac's response; nearly diving for the phone as it began buzzing once again.
'Sorry, nothing to be panicked about, but I need a favour...'
'Sure, just tell me already'
Stella waited for further details from Mac and as the messages came she found herself slightly laughing as she mentally pictured Mac's situation. Wasting no time she got up from the couch and grabbed for her jacket before heading out into the night.
...
His head was pounding, and getting worse with every passing moment as he cradled a sobbing Lucy in his arms. He had tried everything to calm her down, and nothing worked. Stella couldn't get there soon enough.
"Hello" the electronic bird squawked. "Hello" it squawked again a few short seconds later. This had continued for at least the last two hours and Mac wasn't sure how much more he could take from the malfunctioning toy Lucy refused to let go of.
Finally a soft knock came to the door and Mac immediately stood up, carefully placing Lucy down on the couch and warning her to stay put as he sprinted over to the door, slipping out into the hallway as he opened the door.
"Thank God" he sighed, shutting the door behind him and slumping up against it. "Did you get it?"
"I think so" Stella shrugged. "You owe me Mac, do you have any idea how hard it is to find a toy store that's open at 10:00 at night?"
"I know, I'm sorry but the damn bird won't shut up. It's broken and it won't stop saying 'hello' every five seconds. I swear I'm going to lose my mind Stella"
Stella bit her lip, trying to sustain from laughing at Mac's unfortunate situation. "Why didn't you just turn it off? Or take out the batteries?"
"Ha! You go ahead and try prying that thing out of Lucy's arms" Mac quickly scoffed. "When she asked me what was wrong I made the mistake of telling her that the bird was sick; well that's when the waterworks started..." Mac huffed.
"Oh..." Stella frowned, now feeling sorry for not only him, but Lucy as well.
"Yeah, and when I went to go for the batteries she let out a blood curling scream and told me that if I take the batteries out then Squawk will die"
"Squawk?" Stella questioned.
"Yeah" Mac huffed. "Trust me if you heard this thing talk you'd understand where he got his name from"
"Oh Mac" Stella now found herself laughing. "I'm sorry" she gasped in between laughs. "I'm really not trying to laugh"
"Just hand over the bird please"
"Right" Stella cleared her throat. "Sorry, here"
She pulled the toy out of the bag and Mac let out a sigh of relief, thankful she had paid attention to his detailed description of the bird.
"Okay, now the hard part" Mac huffed. "I think I got a plan though. You go in and distract Lucy and I'll switch out Squawk with the decoy"
"Wow, why do I feel like I'm on a field mission" Stella lightly laughed and Mac finally smirked for the first time since she'd been there.
"Trust me, the stakes are even higher here" Mac quipped, pushing the door to the apartment back open and holding the new bird behind his back as Stella entered.
"Hey baby girl" Stella called out softly, feeling her heart slightly break at the sight of Lucy's tear stained cheeks and puffy red eyes.
"Hi Auntie Stella..." Lucy whined, sniffling through her words.
"I heard you bird has a boo boo"
"Uh huh" Lucy nodded; the birds voice box now nearly at a croaking level as it continued to speak, the battery power nearing empty. "Papa Mac said he's sick..."
"Well I bet that Papa Mac can fix him and make him feel better" Stella tried and Lucy shook her head. "Can you at least let him try? Papa Mac is very good at making people feel better when they're sick"
"Okay" Lucy finally gave in, holding the bird out for Stella to take. "Don't hurt him okay?"
"Okay" Stella nodded, carefully passing it on to Mac, who had already placed the new bird in the kitchen out of Lucy's sight. "How about we go get your pyjama's on and maybe by the time you're done Squawk will be all better okay?"
"Kay" Lucy sniffled once more, holding her arms out for Stella to pick her up.
Stella scooped Lucy up into her arms and Mac passed her Lucy's backpack with her overnight clothes in it and the two girls wandered into the spare bedroom; Stella closing the door behind them to keep Lucy from seeing Mac's 'plan' in action.
A few moments later a now pyjama clad Lucy scurried out of the room, heading straight towards Mac who was sitting on the edge of the couch, rocking the bird in his arms for Lucy's amusement.
"Did you fixed him Papa Mac?" She immediately questioned with her eyes wide and full of hope.
"All better" Mac nodded, handing the new bird over to Lucy who clutched it tight against her chest.
"Look Auntie Stella, Squawk is all better!" Lucy exclaimed as Stella returned to the room.
"That's great sweetie" Stella smiled.
"You know I think it's way past yours and Squawk's bedtime" Mac mentioned as Lucy rubbed her tired eyes.
"Not sleepy" Lucy grumbled through a yawn.
"Sorry kiddo but its bed time" Mac stated firmly, scooping up Lucy. "Say goodnight to Auntie Stella"
"I don't want Auntie Stella to go" Lucy pouted. "Please Papa Mac!"
"Lucy..."
"Please! Just till I go to sleep? Cause Auntie Stella can make sure the bad dreams don't get me"
Mac; buckling under the pressure as he normally did when Lucy batted her eyes at him; looked over to Stella and shrugged his shoulders.
"You are one sad man Mac Taylor" Stella teased. "You can stand toe-to-toe with New York's most hardened criminals but can't last one round with a toddler"
"You try to say no to that" Mac countered, turning Lucy to face Stella; her bottom lip still sticking out and her eyes glistening.
"Fine" Stella instantly caved. "But just until you fall asleep, then Auntie Stella needs to go home"
"Kay!" Lucy smiled.
Mac stopped outside the spare bedroom and Lucy began shaking her head and fidgeting in his arms. "Big bed Papa Mac! Big bed!"
Mac frowned then looked over at Stella. "Word to the wise, if you ever keep her overnight, never let her stay in your bed cause as soon as you let her once, she'll never want to go back to her bed"
Stella laughed lightly as Mac continued on down the hall, arriving at his bedroom and making his way inside; carefully placing Lucy down into the 'big bed' as she called it. Stella climbed into the opposite side of the bed next to Lucy and began stroking her hair.
"Goodnight kiddo" Mac called out as he headed toward the door and flicked off the light.
"Nooooo" Lucy wailed. "Stay Papa Mac!" she begged in between short sobs. It was long past her bedtime and just as Mac had feared, the slightest thing could easily set her off at any moment and none of them would be getting any sleep.
"You said you wanted Auntie Stella to stay" Mac tried to reason with the upset child but her sobs continued.
"Stay" she sniffled once more.
"Alright, alright" Mac huffed, shuffling across his room and climbing into the bed as Lucy scooted over into the middle so she was now in between Mac and Stella.
"Now will you go to sleep?" Mac asked and Lucy simply nodded her head.
"Night" she mumbled sleepily; tossing and turning under the covers, trying to find a comfortable position.
"Goodnight" Mac mumbled through a long yawn; the exhausting events of the evening finally beginning to take their toll his body and mind.
"Auntie Stella, you have to close your eyes" Lucy directed as she noticed Stella watching her with a warm smile.
"Oh, okay" Stella complied, closing her eyes for Lucy's benefit; as fatigue began to set into her as well.
...
Mac gently stirred awake, his eyes blinking frequently as they tried to adjust to the subtle morning light that had begun to peek in through the blinds. He let out a small groan then closed his eyes and rolled over onto his side in hopes of falling back asleep.
The next thing he knew; Mac was awoken again, this time by the sound of the television being switched on in the living room; Lucy laughing and singing along to the theme song from Dora the Explorer.
"Lucy..." Mac mumbled into the pillow, not yet forcing his eyes open. "Go back to sleep, it's too early to be up"
Suddenly another small groan came from beside Mac and his eyes shot open in an instant; his gaze falling upon his sleeping partner who was curled up next to him, his arms holding her close with her back against his chest.
"Good morning" Stella mumbled, mind not fully alert as she instinctively gripped onto the arm holding her, wanting to remain close to the warmth Mac's body was providing.
"Uh... good morning..." Mac stuttered and Stella quickly popped her head up and turned towards him as she started to piece together where she actually was.
"Oh... Um, I uh... we fell asleep?"
"Apparently" Mac confirmed, easing himself away from her once he realized he had been 'spooning' her more or less. For how long, he had no idea. "I'll um... I'm just gonna go make some coffee"
"Yeah, coffee, thats a good idea" Stella rambled.
Mac pushed his way out of the warm bed and shuffled out of the bedroom and headed into the kitchen to start the coffee; Stella following behind him but stopping in the living room to sit with Lucy.
Mac finished making the coffee and entered back into the living room, handing Stella one of the steaming mugs before taking a seat on the opposite end of the sofa; Lucy lightly bouncing in her seat between them.
"Thanks for your help last night" Mac mentioned softly and Stella smiled warmly.
"Anytime"
"Be careful, I might hold you to that" Mac countered and Stella laughed.
As they finished up their coffee, Stella looked at her watch and decided it was time she should be getting home. She stood up from the couch and hugged Lucy before Mac led her to the door.
"Thanks again Stella, really. You're a life saver"
"Oh it was no big deal" Stella assured him. "I wasn't doing anything anyway"
"Well great, same time next Friday then?" Mac teased and Stella laughed.
"One condition..."
"What's that?" Mac wondered.
"I get to sleep in the big bed with Papa Mac again" Stella smirked, offering a quick wink towards Mac who was now frozen in his slight state of shock. Not giving him a chance to respond, Stella quickly took her leave from the apartment and Mac was left standing at the door, overheated brain rendering him incapable of doing or saying anything at all as he watched her walk down the long hallway to the elevator.
"Papa Mac?" Lucy called out nervously; pulling Mac from his mental stupor.
"Sorry Luce, I'm right here" Mac called back, returning to the living room and taking a seat next to Lucy.
The next hour passed by rather quickly as Mac made Lucy some cereal and got her dressed so that she would be ready to go when Danny and Lindsay arrived. A few short minutes later there was a knock at the door and Lucy went barrelling through the hallway towards the door.
As Mac caught up to Lucy he opened the door and Lucy squealed with delight at the sight of her parents on the other side; quickly jumping into Danny's waiting arms.
"How was she?" Lindsay immediately wondered.
"An angel" Mac smirked, passing Lindsay the backpack. "But next time I'm charging you if I have to bird-sit again"
"Trust me, the toy store is the first on the list of things to do today" Danny huffed. "I think Lucy needs a new pet; something a little less noisy"
"Squawk was sick Daddy" Lucy piped up.
"He was?"
"Yep, but Papa Mac and Auntie Stella fixed him"
"Auntie Stella?" Danny wondered, arching a brow at Mac.
"Yep and we had a sleepover Daddy!"
"You did..."
"Yep!" Lucy exclaimed and Danny's grin got wider as he noticed Mac's uncomfortable body language. "Papa Mac keeped all the bad dreams away from Auntie Stella!"
"Oh he did, did he?"
"Uh huh" she nodded and Danny's amusement grew further.
"Well wasn't that nice of Papa Mac" Danny smirked, slapping Mac on the shoulder.
"Okay guys, that's enough" Lindsay mentioned. "Lucy, say thank you to Papa Mac"
"Thanks Papa Mac!" Lucy beamed and Mac patted her head.
"I'll see you next week"
"Thanks Mac. Come on Danny" Lindsay lightly scolded her husband, tugging on his arm.
"Monday Mac; I want details!" Danny called out as his wife dragged him unwillingly down the hallway.
"This aughta be fun..." Mac grumbled to himself but as he made his way back into his apartment and shut the door a warm smile reappeared on his lips, his mind wandering back to Stella's playful suggestion from earlier.
THE END
**Well that concludes another adventure with Mac and Lucy... and Stella ;) I don't think I have it in me to write a story without at least a hint of SMacked in it ;)
Hopefully you enjoyed this one, let me know your thoughts in a review!**