step by step
An NCIS fic collection
by mew-tsubaki
- ^-^3
imagine: miscellany 16—mug thief (this post on the sideblog: 706564732154429440/ parknight-imagines-miscellany-16-mug-thief)
tags: established!Parknight (à la long distance :P), s20e10/brief xover w/Hawai'i & LA
- ^-^3
They don't have a lot of time for levity, not with a dead FLETC instructor being only the first of many bodies and many mysteries. But there's time to breathe and there's time for a relaxing, non-alcoholic drink once Parker knows Jimmy, Hanna, and Tennant are safe and sound and back at base.
"Is that my mug?"
Tennant's words are simple, perhaps befuddled, and all eyes land on Parker when he raises said mug in hand and tacks on that it's her tea, too. Tennant, for her part, masks her annoyance fairly well, even as she grumbles about him feeling comfortable in their Pearl Harbor office. But her annoyance brings to mind someone else's reaction, because borrowing mugs isn't a habit he started here.
No, for a brief moment, Parker allows his mind to fly back home east, to D.C., to an apartment a short drive from his own, to a home he frequents half the time and which he knows rather like the back of his hand. The kitchen in particular comes to mind, small and cozy for two to move about, with a cabinet full of her very own eclectic mug collection.
Some people collect tchotchkes. Others collect stamps or keychains. Jess Knight collects mugs, from places she visits or from loved ones over the years. Every last one is an individual, too; no two are the same. And part of Knight's morning ritual is to turn on her coffee machine first thing, even before she's fully awake, and then she pours two mugs once the caffeine's ready. Then she slides one across the counter to Parker as a sleepy smile blooms on her beautiful face.
And Parker? He smirks and snags her mug instead, which is fine since they take it the same way.
Knight laughs every time. "Mug thief," she chides, but it's the kind of reprimand that carries no heat or annoyance behind it, least of all when her grin widens and her warm brown eyes crinkle at the edges.
He's not sure whatever compelled him to filch her mug in the first place, and he's fond of Knight's nickname for him. But it hits a little different today, riling up someone else and being so far from home. So far from Knight.
Parker's a mug thief, but he's Knight's mug thief, and it's become a habit, really. But he supposes he should break that habit at least outside the office.
- ^-^3
Originally had this drafted based on the trailers for the crossover event alone. X'D Now, post-event, this still jives super well. Also, that was actually a delightful event, imo! *hooray for being apprehensive/setting low expectations, LOL*
-mew! :3c